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The Children's Bible in Colour
- GenresChildrens
518 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1964
12 people are currently reading
60 people want to read
About the author
Hamlyn Publishing Group
210 books6 followersHamlyn is a UK publishing company founded by Paul Hamlyn in 1950 with an initial investment of £350. His desire was to create "fine books with the common touch" which remains the foundation of its commercial success. It is part of the Octopus Publishing Group, now owned by Hachette Livre.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 6, 2022
That's the Bible I had as a child:
Book cover
Garden of Eden
Jesus Enters Jerusalem
Parables of Jesus
Flight into Egypt
In the Greek edition, the translation was done by Β. Μουστάκης, Ι. Τιμαγένους and Δ. Καλδίρης (approved by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece) and the Greek publishing house's name is Ι. Σιδέρης. The very same book, with identical illustrations and general format, was translated into other languages by many other publishing houses around the world (Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Czechia, Ukraine, UK, USA, maybe more). Many generations of Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish kids grew up with these images! But no edition mentions the illustrator's name!
So someone made approximately 600 illustrations and no one remembers their name? That's a book mystery if ever I've seen one! I had to get to the bottom of it.
In The Ampleforth Journal, ( in Volume 74 – 1968-69 pg 82) I found the following reference:
THE CATHOLIC CHILDREN'S BIBLE IN COLOUR Paul Hamlyn 1968 518 p 30/-
This book received an imprimatur in March 1963. It was printed in Czechoslovakia (just in time). It has been designed by Editions Graphiques Internationales, illustrated by Italians at the Fabbri studios (copyright 1962), and produced by arrangement with Western Publ. Co. Inc. (copyright 1965). There is at least one illustration on every page, and the total of illustrations adds up to at least as much space as the total of text. Whether they are good, or good for children, is a matter of taste; they are certainly clear. The publishers tell us that in the first month of sale (October), over 12,000 copies were sold: but then, the same sheet tells us that the book has 528 pages.
source http://www.ampleforthjournal.org/
Fabbri studios!
From the Italian Wikipedia, I found that Fratelli Fabbri Editori was an Italian publishing house founded in 1947 by two brothers from Forlì, Giovanni and Dino Fabbri, who were later joined by Rino (their younger brother). In 2016, the Fabbri Editions became part of the Arnoldo Mondadori Editore group [...] In the late 70s Giovanni Fabbri was targeted by the Brigate Rosse (terrorist organisation) and decided to move to Lugano, Switzerland. Rhino Fabbri chose Paraguay. Dino Fabbri went to Miami, Florida.
I also found a reference in the book Transgender, Intersex, and Biblical Interpretation by Teresa J. Hornsby and Deryn Guest:
In our evangelical household, the hefty Children's Bible in Colour (1964; hereafter CBIC) was a primary text. Its representations of characters and events viscerally grabbed a child's imagination. The illustrations, executed by the Fabbri studios under the direction of Sandro Nardini and Aldo Torchio, provide flesh, color, movement and background imagery for stories heard only aurally (but repeatedly) at Sunday School. pg 46.
Sandro Nardini and Aldo Torchio and their team of illustrators!
I found in an Italian blog named Soloillustratori the following reference:
Sono piuttosto in imbarazzo a parlare di Sandro Nardini, altro illustratore di libri per ragazzi degli anni 50, perchè non ho trovato nulla su di lui, nemmeno la sola data di nascita.
I am rather embarrassed to talk about Sandro Nardini, another illustrator of children's books of the 50s because I have not found anything about him, not even a single date of birth.
source http://soloillustratori.blogspot.com/...
In the book Das Salgari-Abenteuer : intermediale Adaptionen eines italienischen Klassikers by Karen Struve ,pg 18, there is a mention to Aldo Torchio ((1925 - 1999) and his pseudonym, Haltor.
Now about the first Italian illustrated edition(s) I managed to find two references and both confirm the existence of two distinct editions.
1) The first edition is the Bibbia published in 1962: La Bibbia illustrata, Fratelli Fabbri Editori 1962, 5 volumi 25x31 cm (The illustrated Bible, Fratelli Fabbri Editori 1962 in 5 volumes (accompanied by an additional volume of Church History In regalo il volume Storia della Chiesa a cura di F. Degalli e rivuduta da Mons. A.Paredi) and this is the source of the illustrations.
2) The second edition La sacra Bibbia was published in 1963 (Antico e Nuovo Testamento - Fabbri Editori - 7 volumi) with the last two volumes published in 1965, a total of 7 volumes, with different pictures photos and illustrations.
sources:
1) La Fabbri dei Fratelli Fabbri (Studi e ricerche di storia dell'editoria Vol. 51 by Carotti Carlo and Andriani Giacinto:
pg 32:
Pubblicata per far conoscere il Vecchio Testamento, lettura non particolarmente praticata nel nostro paese, la Bibbia ha avuto due diverse edizioni, la prima nel 1962, la seconda nel 1963 (La Sacra Bibbia), pubblicizzata anche in televisione. A quest'opera fanno da completamento I Vangeli e l'Apocalisse (1965). I problemi di attualità religiosa sono proposti in Il Concilio Vaticano II (1966), mentre pratica è la Guida alla prima Comunione (1969).
In this book, both illustrators are mentioned by name as contributors in various other editions but without any further biographical information and sadly when it comes to La Bibbia edition on pg 124 and La Sacra Bibbia edition on pg 134 there is no mention of any illustrator at all! Mama mia, perché così? Perché sta succedendo questo?
pg 124
pg 134
2) There is also an essay by Tiberio Feliciani Storia della storiografia artistica, del restauro e della conservazione, I maestri del colore: una storia dell'arte a dispense where is mentioned:
Anche l' aspetto religioso non viene tralasciato portando alla pubblicazione della Bibbia (1962), de La sacra Bibbia (1963) e nel 1965, de I Vangeli e l’Apocalisse.pg 35
source from academia
I found photos of both editions on amazon Italy:
La Bibbia:
source https://www.amazon.it/bibbia-volumi-M...
La Sacra Bibbia:
source https://www.amazon.it/SACRA-BIBBIA-Te...
Bonus material: I also found another Bibble edition by Fabbri:
La Sacra Bibbia con tavole di Gustave Doré. 4 volumi senza cofanetto - Edizione illustrata con testo ufficiale della Bibbia CEI 1974, dell'editore Fabbri.
source amazon Italy
In case you stumble upon an English edition advertised as The Golden Children's Bible Illustrated by Jose Miralles, which contains the exact Illustrations of the original Italian Bibbia you shouldn't be confused.
Jose Miralles is the name of the artist who slightly changed the book cover and turned an original illustration (Sermon on the Mount) from this:
To this:
source https://www.rhcbooks.com/books/67864/...
Probably this was done to tone down a bit the extremely white-blond Jesus depicted in the original. Truth be told, Jesus was from Nazareth not Asgard!
Fun fact: Did you know that Salvador Dalí illustrated a Bible, published by Rizzoli Editions?
Book cover
Garden of Eden
Jesus Enters Jerusalem
Parables of Jesus
Flight into Egypt
In the Greek edition, the translation was done by Β. Μουστάκης, Ι. Τιμαγένους and Δ. Καλδίρης (approved by the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece) and the Greek publishing house's name is Ι. Σιδέρης. The very same book, with identical illustrations and general format, was translated into other languages by many other publishing houses around the world (Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Czechia, Ukraine, UK, USA, maybe more). Many generations of Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish kids grew up with these images! But no edition mentions the illustrator's name!
So someone made approximately 600 illustrations and no one remembers their name? That's a book mystery if ever I've seen one! I had to get to the bottom of it.
In The Ampleforth Journal, ( in Volume 74 – 1968-69 pg 82) I found the following reference:
THE CATHOLIC CHILDREN'S BIBLE IN COLOUR Paul Hamlyn 1968 518 p 30/-
This book received an imprimatur in March 1963. It was printed in Czechoslovakia (just in time). It has been designed by Editions Graphiques Internationales, illustrated by Italians at the Fabbri studios (copyright 1962), and produced by arrangement with Western Publ. Co. Inc. (copyright 1965). There is at least one illustration on every page, and the total of illustrations adds up to at least as much space as the total of text. Whether they are good, or good for children, is a matter of taste; they are certainly clear. The publishers tell us that in the first month of sale (October), over 12,000 copies were sold: but then, the same sheet tells us that the book has 528 pages.
source http://www.ampleforthjournal.org/
Fabbri studios!
From the Italian Wikipedia, I found that Fratelli Fabbri Editori was an Italian publishing house founded in 1947 by two brothers from Forlì, Giovanni and Dino Fabbri, who were later joined by Rino (their younger brother). In 2016, the Fabbri Editions became part of the Arnoldo Mondadori Editore group [...] In the late 70s Giovanni Fabbri was targeted by the Brigate Rosse (terrorist organisation) and decided to move to Lugano, Switzerland. Rhino Fabbri chose Paraguay. Dino Fabbri went to Miami, Florida.
I also found a reference in the book Transgender, Intersex, and Biblical Interpretation by Teresa J. Hornsby and Deryn Guest:
In our evangelical household, the hefty Children's Bible in Colour (1964; hereafter CBIC) was a primary text. Its representations of characters and events viscerally grabbed a child's imagination. The illustrations, executed by the Fabbri studios under the direction of Sandro Nardini and Aldo Torchio, provide flesh, color, movement and background imagery for stories heard only aurally (but repeatedly) at Sunday School. pg 46.
Sandro Nardini and Aldo Torchio and their team of illustrators!
I found in an Italian blog named Soloillustratori the following reference:
Sono piuttosto in imbarazzo a parlare di Sandro Nardini, altro illustratore di libri per ragazzi degli anni 50, perchè non ho trovato nulla su di lui, nemmeno la sola data di nascita.
I am rather embarrassed to talk about Sandro Nardini, another illustrator of children's books of the 50s because I have not found anything about him, not even a single date of birth.
source http://soloillustratori.blogspot.com/...
In the book Das Salgari-Abenteuer : intermediale Adaptionen eines italienischen Klassikers by Karen Struve ,pg 18, there is a mention to Aldo Torchio ((1925 - 1999) and his pseudonym, Haltor.
Now about the first Italian illustrated edition(s) I managed to find two references and both confirm the existence of two distinct editions.
1) The first edition is the Bibbia published in 1962: La Bibbia illustrata, Fratelli Fabbri Editori 1962, 5 volumi 25x31 cm (The illustrated Bible, Fratelli Fabbri Editori 1962 in 5 volumes (accompanied by an additional volume of Church History In regalo il volume Storia della Chiesa a cura di F. Degalli e rivuduta da Mons. A.Paredi) and this is the source of the illustrations.
2) The second edition La sacra Bibbia was published in 1963 (Antico e Nuovo Testamento - Fabbri Editori - 7 volumi) with the last two volumes published in 1965, a total of 7 volumes, with different pictures photos and illustrations.
sources:
1) La Fabbri dei Fratelli Fabbri (Studi e ricerche di storia dell'editoria Vol. 51 by Carotti Carlo and Andriani Giacinto:
pg 32:
Pubblicata per far conoscere il Vecchio Testamento, lettura non particolarmente praticata nel nostro paese, la Bibbia ha avuto due diverse edizioni, la prima nel 1962, la seconda nel 1963 (La Sacra Bibbia), pubblicizzata anche in televisione. A quest'opera fanno da completamento I Vangeli e l'Apocalisse (1965). I problemi di attualità religiosa sono proposti in Il Concilio Vaticano II (1966), mentre pratica è la Guida alla prima Comunione (1969).
In this book, both illustrators are mentioned by name as contributors in various other editions but without any further biographical information and sadly when it comes to La Bibbia edition on pg 124 and La Sacra Bibbia edition on pg 134 there is no mention of any illustrator at all! Mama mia, perché così? Perché sta succedendo questo?
pg 124
pg 134
2) There is also an essay by Tiberio Feliciani Storia della storiografia artistica, del restauro e della conservazione, I maestri del colore: una storia dell'arte a dispense where is mentioned:
Anche l' aspetto religioso non viene tralasciato portando alla pubblicazione della Bibbia (1962), de La sacra Bibbia (1963) e nel 1965, de I Vangeli e l’Apocalisse.pg 35
source from academia
I found photos of both editions on amazon Italy:
La Bibbia:
source https://www.amazon.it/bibbia-volumi-M...
La Sacra Bibbia:
source https://www.amazon.it/SACRA-BIBBIA-Te...
Bonus material: I also found another Bibble edition by Fabbri:
La Sacra Bibbia con tavole di Gustave Doré. 4 volumi senza cofanetto - Edizione illustrata con testo ufficiale della Bibbia CEI 1974, dell'editore Fabbri.
source amazon Italy
In case you stumble upon an English edition advertised as The Golden Children's Bible Illustrated by Jose Miralles, which contains the exact Illustrations of the original Italian Bibbia you shouldn't be confused.
Jose Miralles is the name of the artist who slightly changed the book cover and turned an original illustration (Sermon on the Mount) from this:
To this:
source https://www.rhcbooks.com/books/67864/...
Probably this was done to tone down a bit the extremely white-blond Jesus depicted in the original. Truth be told, Jesus was from Nazareth not Asgard!
Fun fact: Did you know that Salvador Dalí illustrated a Bible, published by Rizzoli Editions?
May 9, 2019
As stories go, these aren't too bad although there is a definite trend of 'we are right, you are not', even in this toned down version (not to mention some serious violence and destruction), which I don't believe should be the focus of any religious text (what happened to love thy neighbour?) never mind those aimed at children. I may be a cynical adult witch (heathen, I know) but I'm sure focusing on inclusion and acceptance might be a better approach to life. Having said that, I did enjoy reading this (which given my love of horror may not be such a good thing) and the illustrations were great and supported each story well.
May 2, 2020
This alongside some attendance at Sunday School was my introduction to the Bible and I loved the illustrations alongside the stories taken from the bible. It also prepared me for Religious Education studies which I took at school achieving CSE Grade 1 equivalent O Level Grade C. I still have it and I think it is a lovely illustration for bible events.
March 25, 2025
Got one of these for 50p from a car-boot sale and then read thorough it over breakfast with the kids for nearly a year.
I appreciated that unlike many of the more modern children's Bibles which are very loose paraphrases, this one actually is more or less Scripture word-for-word, except cut short in some of the stories. I prefer that, cause it then lets me interpret the text for my kids rather than rely on some potentially unsound conclusion that is usually added by the editor. Most of the illustrations were good, and not the cartoonish nonsense.
If you can put up with the blond-haired, blue-eyed, Scandinavian-looking Jesus in the NT illustrations it will probably be a better option than some newer Bibles for kids.
I appreciated that unlike many of the more modern children's Bibles which are very loose paraphrases, this one actually is more or less Scripture word-for-word, except cut short in some of the stories. I prefer that, cause it then lets me interpret the text for my kids rather than rely on some potentially unsound conclusion that is usually added by the editor. Most of the illustrations were good, and not the cartoonish nonsense.
If you can put up with the blond-haired, blue-eyed, Scandinavian-looking Jesus in the NT illustrations it will probably be a better option than some newer Bibles for kids.
September 19, 2021
I remember the illustrations, that's all.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews