Red leather binding with gilt title on the spine.

We provide an in-depth photographic presentation of this item to stimulate your feeling and touch. More traditional book descriptions are immediately available. 

•          Note: This book carries a £5.00 discount to those that subscribe to the F.B.A. mailing list

Please view the photographs. This is a nicely used ‘Book of Common Prayer’. 

Your circa-1931 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) is likely a printing of the 1662 Church of England standard or the Proposed 1928 Prayer Book. Publisher details for these editions are almost always printed on the Title Page (usually preceding Morning Prayer) or the Colophon at the very end of the book. 

1. Check for the Publisher. Publishers during this era generally fell into one of three categories: 

• The King’s/Queen’s Printers: Look for the names Eyre & Spottiswoode or later, Eyre & Spottiswoode Limited.
• University Presses: Oxford University Press (OUP) and Cambridge University Press (CUP) printed the vast majority of standard English BCPs.
• The Church of England/SPCPA: The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) distributed many standard and regional copies.

2. Identify the Text

• The standard text used across the Anglican Communion in 1931 was the traditional 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
• In 1928, the Church of England proposed a revised prayer book. While it was rejected by Parliament, many publishers issued “Proposed 1928” editions for private and unofficial use during this period.
• Check if your copy includes the “Lectionary” (tables of lessons), which often has a year indicator. 

3. Estimate Value & Collectibility

Vintage 1930s copies of the BCP are fairly common and widely collected for their history rather than high monetary value.

• Value Range: Standard pew editions or small pocket sizes typically sell between £10 and £30 depending on condition.
• Premium Bindings: Copies bound in fine leather, featuring gilt-edged pages, brass clasps, or decorative divinity circuits (overlapping leather edges) hold higher value.