What is the oldest book you have read (not the Bible or Liturgy)

Does the King James Bible 1611 count :laugh:

Read in Gill and Barnes quite often, not sure how old they are.

 

Homer Odyssey 700BC in Swedish translation

 

Lately, I had reason to read some of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (written between 1386 and 1400). I was helping a friend's child with a high school assignment. (I explained to him that the only reason I chose not to major in English in college was because I didn't want to spend an entire semester studying Chaucer, a required course. I wanted him to know that his mother's friendship trumps my dislike of Chaucer!)

The second oldest, which I use frequently, is, in fact, on my desk even as I type this. It's a Latin textbook by Collar and Daniell, published in 1901. While the book itself isn't exactly ancient, its contents surely are!

 

Beowolf

I've read a good deal of John Gill and John Calvin.

And the book of Job is quite old.

 

As I have also. Man, that was a long way home after the Trojan war.

 

The Divine Unity of Scripture by Adolph Saphir, D.D.
Date is 1892 by Hodder and Stoughton, 27 Patternoster Row, London

There is a note in the book written in by hand March 16, 1893.

 

My is a us history text book form the early 1900s.

It really surprised me the great info in it. This is likely for 7-12 graders. Not sure about the age grade. I bought it from a library sale.

The current text books do not even compare to this book. I noticed serveral things that would never be in the new revised text books.

I enjoy history it was a joy for me to read.:thumbs:

 

Do you mean written the longest ago, or printed the longest ago? Other than the Bible I would say the Odyssey and the Iliad. They were written 8th century B.C. Of course I read them in English translations which were made centuries after the original. I read Beowolf in the old English text it was written in, but that was still centuries after Homer wasn't it. I have read Josephus' "Jewish War" and "Antiquities of the Jews."

Now the oldest actual book in my library is a first edition of Patrick Fairburn's "Typology of Scripture." I think that one is from 1847. My copy is not really in great shape, but it was a gift and I have read it although it is too delicate to use for much research now.

Another favorite of mine would be, "Pioneer Life, or 30 years a Hunter" by Philip Tome. That is an awesome 1st hand accounting of pioneer life in western Pennsylvania and Ohio in the 18th century. Mine is a reprint but it originaly came out in the 1840s.

 

The Jewish War, Josephus

(Gives great insight into NT times)