The CSB Handcrafted Collection Ancient Faith Study Bible Review

Holman has recently been firing on all cylinders with their new Handcrafted Collection. The Handcrafted Collection is the new name for the premium CSB Bibles. If a Bible has this label, you can expect to find it built with premium materials. One of their newest to this series is the Ancient Faith Study Bible. This Bible has been out for awhile in other bindings, but it is now receiving the VIP treatment from Holman.

I have loved the Ancient Faith Study Bible since it was first released and I have a Leathertouch Over Board Version that I’m still quite fond of. The Handcrafted Collection has a big surprise though—one I certainly didn’t expect. Let’s look at this new offering from Holman.

Content

First, let’s talk content before we get to the surprises. This is the exact same content as previous versions of this Bible so if you’re familiar then this will be nothing new to you. This Bible is targeted toward people who like biblical history. It’s also a great introduction into biblical history from the second through sixth centuries. The early church fathers were serious and their thoughts and writings still greatly benefit us today. You’ll find this Bible is packed with study notes from the early church fathers and includes profiles of them. These include Irenaeus of Lyons, Origen, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Augustine, and many more. There are exclusive feature articles and what they call “Twisted Truth” call-outs that show where some in the early church went wrong in their views and teaching. Each book of the Bible has a nice introduction and in the back of the Bible you’ll find the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds.

Outer Materials

This Bible is thick and flexible. The outer is much like the new Handcrafted Collection Single Column that just released. I think the leather on this one may be a bit softer, but it still has a nice grain and I think it’s a step up from the recent premium CSB Verse by Verse.

The spine has the CSB logo, “HOLY BIBLE”, “CHRISTIAN STANDARD BIBLE”, and “HOLMAN” stamped in gold. There are three tooled bars on the spine as well. There are black and head and tail bands and three double sided satin ribbon bookmarks. The bookmarks surprise me a little. I like that they are wider than the Verse by Verse, but they have gone astray from what I thought was a developing theme for the bookmarks in Holman’s premium Bibles. Both the Verse by Verse and the Single column feature three ribbons with a straight cut at the end in black, gold, and orange. The Ancient Faith has gone a different direction and has black, tan, and red ribbons with a diagonal cut. This did surprise me. The page edges are a red under gold art gilt.

Inner Materials

Inside, the liner is what Holman calls a natural leather. It’s very flexible and shiny. It’s much different than what is on the Single Column. It’s not bad, but I can’t say it is my favorite choice either. It almost looks synthetic and I wouldn’t have known it was leather unless Holman had said so on the back of the box. There is a gold perimeter gilt line, which is a touch that I really enjoy.

Paper and Text Block

The part of this Bible that really shocked me is the paper. Holman chose to use the same paper that is in the other Ancient Faith Bibles. This paper isn’t premium and it almost yellowish and designed to look old. I liked that paper on their other bindings, which were also designed to look old, but I am not a fan of it on the Handcrafted Collection. Opening a premium cover to reveal this paper is a shock to the system and frankly, I believe it was a poor choice. A premium Bible should have premium paper. This paper has two much ghosting to be in a premium Bible like this.

The text block itself is really nice. The biblical text is double column and 10.25 font while the notes are a triple column layout with an 8 point font. Page headings, chapter numbers, and verse numbers are all in a red accent color.

Extras

The back features a Biographical Index so you can easily find all the commentary from particular authors. There’s also a Concordance and maps.

Conclusion

All in all, this is a nice edition to the Handcrafted Collection. However, only the outer materials really set it apart from the other versions of the Ancient Faith Study Bible. If I were buying one today, I’d still choose the Leathertouch Over Board and I’d save some money. You’ll get the same paper and content in both and I don’t think the goatskin and ribbons justify are the worth the extra money for this particular Bible.

You can pick up this Bible at Lifeway or Amazon (affiliate).

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this Bible from Holman in exchange for a fair and honest review.