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Pictures, Engravings and Extracts From Old Books

Over 4,200 free images from old, rare, antique and vintage books. High-resolution images for sale.

The Irmin Column in the Cathedral of Hildesheim

Taymouth Castle

Rustic postcard border of interleaved twigs and vines

11. Seal of Gusion.

Old Bologna (1850s)

Isaak Newton [Portrait of Sir Isaac Newton]

Battle in the Sacred Linden Groves

Decorative clip-art Victorian border, antique green

Initial letter V with a mermaid

Front Cover, Bohemia Part Two

Title Page, Bohemia Part Two

Sir Isaac Newton

Battle of Knights

Full-page border of repeated vine leaves

Votivkirche, Vienna

53.8.—IHS

Avenue of Sighs

Christmas Still Life

A schoolroom in Tunisia

Llanthony Priory, Valley of the Honddu

Adrift from The Snow Queen

Armillary Sphere, Scanned Version

The giants tore up trees

initial letter R with small girl

Dark brown fantasy watercolour border

Historiated decorative initial capital letter M in Blue

Leicester Hospital, Warwick

Scheuerfest - Spring Cleaning

Mellon’s Baby Food with baby and roses

clipart: initial letter S from late 15th century printed book

Monroe Colliery Co.

Title Page

Full-page border with hearts and moons

Peasant Girl of Pays de Vaud—Type.

Rustic floral border with trellis and grapevines

Front Cover

Floriated initial capital letter “S”

Chaldee Woman

Cheerful full-page vintage colour border

Free clip-art: Victorian border of twigs and leaves

Cheerful double-page spread vintage colour border

Engraving of smiling urchin boy carrying sack and vegetables

Nazareth, Palestine

The Magical Circle of King Solomon

Klara Küry as Maya in The Greek Slave

Full-page border with roses, black and white

The thoughts of my spirit seek you

Scrollwork Border from page 227

Portrait of Erasmus of Rotterdam

A Reminiscence

Choirboy singing from balcony pulpit

Names of Angels and Days (overview)

Auf dem Weihnachtsmarkt (At Christmasfest)

Cherub playing a grand piano

Ornate Victorian Border

2.—Stonehenge. – Restored Plan.

Seal of Coin of Libra (Obverse)

Seal of Coin of Libra

Seal of Coin of Leo (obverse)

Decorative clip-art Victorian border, Black and White

Seal of Coin of Virgo (obverse)

Vorfrühling - Early Spring

The Virgin Mary

Front Cover

Clip-art: calligraphic decorative initial capital letter B from XIV. Century No. 1

Title Page, Error’s Chains

Gods of our Saxon Ancestors.

Ancient Druidic Worship at Stonehenge, England

Clip-art: calligraphic decorative initial capital letter N from XIV. Century No. 1

Cholmondeley Castle

Frontispiece: Alnwick Castle

Front Cover, Morris, Picturesque Views

Free clip-art: Victorian border of brown twigs and green leaves

Skeleton sitting on a tree stump and waving, from 18th century engraving

Title Page, Osteographia

Deer Skeleton from 18th century engraving

Decorative initial (drop cap) D

Crusaders conquor Jerusalem

Murder in the Castle

My Dearest Child (My Love)

Purple Victorian Vine-leaf Border

Saint Bonaventura as a Monk

Vignette: crucifix with skull and prayer book or bible

Clip-art: calligraphic decorative initial capital letter D from XIV. Century No. 1

Summer Evening

Sir Christopher Hatton

Atrolabe: scientist and boy

Knight, Death and the Devil (1513)

Full-page border with bird, flowers, ivy

Collection of alms at the funeral of don Álvaro de Luna

Eagle Tower, Caernarfon

Early Victorian Border from Book Cover

They Crossed the Delaware in Safety

The figures of the Divine Letters

William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke

[Ancient] Greek Marble Mosaics 1: Olympia

Sir Philip Sidney

Corner Bookcase Ornament

The Blizzard in America; Dead Boy in the Snow

Victorian vine-leaf page border

Choral Recital with the organ

Front Cover, Le Musée Artistique et Littéraire

Visit the full list of Recently added images and of the most popular images.

Borders and Initials

Decorative Initials and Drop Caps: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T Th U V W X Y Z
See all initials, or all alphabets, or the Decorative borders and frames

Holiday Images

Curious Old Texts, Slang and Dictionaries

A Provincial Dictionary by Francis Grose (1790); 66 regional proverbs.
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable by E. Cobham Brewer (1894); over 17,000 entries! New 2008-02-15.
Smiley's Recipe and Housekeeping Guide, historical recipes transcribed and annotated by CatamountClyde Studios.
Canting Dictionary by Nathan Bailey (1736), a dictionary of the slang of the underworld, of thieves, gypsies and vagrants. Text complete
Dictionary of the Canting Tongue by Francis Grose (1811)
Musa Pedestris: Three Centuries of Canting Songs and Slang Rhymes [1536-1896] edited by John S. Farmer, 1896.
The Nuttall Encyclpædia, by the Rev. James Wood (1907) (over 14,000 entries)
Oratio Dominica, or, The Lord’s Prayer in over a hundred Languages, Versions and Characters (Scripts) by Dan Brown (1713). I have scanned every page, and also an insert folded in the back, so this book is complete.
Dictionary of Proverbs by Nathan Bailey, 1721. The whole book in text and images (complete)
The Grammar of Heraldry, by Samuel Kent 1718. I have typed the first chapter on how to Blazon, etc., and will do more if requested.
Universal Etymological English Dictionary, edited by Nathan Bailey, 1736. A little under 500 entries, but very incomplete; this is a transcription I started in 1991. It is a different book than the dictionary containing the Canting Dictionary.
The Itinerary of John Leland the Antiquary edited by Thomas Hearne, 1745. 122 page images including cover and title page; I have started to transcribe names that appear in the text.
More wonderful old texts at words.fromoldbooks.org

The Pictures: Woodcuts, Engravings & Clip art

Pictures of Old Books