Knowledge Book

The Knowledge Book is a utility item available only in Java Edition that grants the player one or more crafting recipes when used. Right-clicking with the book consumes it and unlocks the listed recipes within the player's recipe book, after which they appear as known formulas in the crafting interface.

A Knowledge Book cannot be found in the Creative inventory and does not appear through normal survival play. It can only be obtained through commands, such as /give @s knowledge_book[recipes=[bucket,flower_pot]], which produces a copy that teaches the recipes for buckets and flower pots. This makes the item primarily a tool for map makers and server operators rather than ordinary players.

The Knowledge Book pairs well with the game rule doLimitedCrafting, which prevents players from crafting items until the corresponding recipe has been unlocked. By distributing copies of the book throughout a custom map, designers can gate progression behind exploration or specific objectives. A Knowledge Book may also be stored inside a chiseled bookshelf by interacting with the shelf while holding the book in the main hand.

The item has the Epic rarity tier, is not renewable, and does not stack in the inventory. Before The Flattening in version 1.13, the Knowledge Book used the numeric ID 453.