Phillip Patterson's Amazing Handwritten Bible
New Yorker Phillip Patterson took four years, from 2009-2013, to handwrite this stunning artisanal copy of the Bible.
Patterson, a retired interior designer in his early sixties at the time and suffering from Aids, said the practice made him more patient, more loving, and more open to difference.
“I hadn’t counted on the fact that it would be so beautiful. Or that it would be so exhilarating. And so long.”
Phillip Patterson writes out the book of Ecclesiastes with great care.
Patterson's Process
Patterson chose to copy a 1611 King James Version weighing in at nearly 800,000 words onto sheets of full-size 19-by-13-inch watercolor paper.
He began by ruling each page by hand with pencil lines. Erasing the pencil lines when he'd finished to leave a clean page.
Working anything from 6-14 hours per day and going through 496 pens, his labor of love was captured in over 4,000 stunning photos by photographer Laura Glazer.
"Every day as I write, I discover something new, and it expands my mind more and more," Patterson said. "Not so I can become more of a religious person, but so that I can become more of a whole person."
He particularly enjoyed copying the Book of Ruth, which he interpreted as people acting loyally and doing the right thing saying "These people are (like us) trying to understand where they fit into this world."
Despite keeping up that incredibly intense schedule, he said "I go to bed and close my eyes and feel so incredibly serene."
There is a wonderful carousel of photos documenting this project here;
https://chronogram.com/hudsonvalley/portfolio-laura-glazer/Slideshow/2172616/2172619
An Encouragement
As I continue to research the gift that is hand-copying the Bible, I keep running across stories like this one. What Phillip Patterson undertook was a truly painstaking craft creating a 2,400-page legacy he ultimately gifted to his church.
His project's ambition was way beyond the scope of Bible Copy Club but is nonetheless truly inspiring at the end of a week of Bible transcription.
Your hand copies are a legacy.
