Gutenberg originally printed around 180 copies, with each recipient of the black-letter text allowing for illumination and rubrication, a process by which individuals add “artistic embellishment” to the book, resulting in each copy appearing unique.
Less than 50 complete, original copies of the book are known to exist — all of which are now believed to be owned by public institutions or museums, making the supply for a copy essentially zero.
In place of any obtainable copies of complete examples, collectors have turned to fragments, such as the leaf offered by Bayliss. Its provenance can be traced back to the Gutenberg Bible of New York book dealer Gabriel Wells.
Wells had an incomplete (missing 50 of 643 pages) copy of the book, but he believed he would be able to make more money by dividing the book into separate pages, selling each for $150 ($100 for the damaged leafs).
These became known as “The Noble Fragments.”
