Bidspirit auction | BROTHERS, RICHARD. The New Covenant

BROTHERS, RICHARD. The New Covenant Between God and His People; Or, The Hebrew Constitution and Charter; With the Statutes and Ordinances, the Laws and Regulations, and Commands and Covenants. FIRST EDITION. Complete with 22 hand-colored plates of court costume by John Finleyson (Brothers’ successor). With two additional plates (one folding). pp. 56. Trace stained. Original printed boards, recased. Folio. Roth B17, 68. London, A. Snell, “Year of the World, 5500 - Christian Era, 1830”. Canadian-born Richard Brothers (1757-1824) was the founder of ANGLO-ISRAELISM, the belief that the English are the descendants of the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel. Brothers believed he was destined to repopulate Jerusalem with the Jewish race, many of whom he discovered were living in England without realising their heritage. He styled himself as the “Nephew of the Almighty” as he considered himself descended from one of the brothers of Jesus and claimed he would soon be revealed as prince of the Hebrews and ruler of the world. He was however removed to a lunatic asylum from where he composed this work (and others of a similar tendency). The series of plates detail the court-dress of various officials of Brothers’ new Kingdom that was to be restored in Palestine under his leadership.