Book of Kells: History, Illuminations Book of Kells Detail from the Book of Kells showing the heads of lions and chalices spouting vines: all examples of abstract Celtic art . One of the greatest illuminated manuscripts Detail from Book of Kells. LOOKING FOR ART BOOKS? For more about Christianity and the arts, see: Christian Art (c.150-2000). Opening Page to Gospel of John. A masterpiece of religious art from the 8th century. For details of the medieval European renaissance, under Charlemagne, see: Ottonian Art (900-1050) Introduction One of the great masterpieces in the History of Irish art , and a world-famous example of early Christian art , the Book of Kells (Leabhar Cheanannais) is the most famous of the illuminated manuscripts , produced by Irish monks about 800 CE. Also known as the Book of Columba, or the Gospel of Colum Cille, the Book of Kells includes the four Gospels of the New Testament written in Latin, decorated with innumerable illuminations, illustrations and miniature images in a blaze of colour.

Although unfinished, it is a wonderful example of medieval Christian art and one of the best surviving examples of the Hiberno-Saxon style or Insular art. It is on permanent display at Trinity College Dublin Library in Ireland. The name "Book of Kells" comes from the Abbey of Kells in County Meath , Ireland, where it was preserved during medieval times. When was the Book of Kells written, where was it written, and who was the author of the manuscript? These questions remain the subject of considerable debate among scholars of monastic Irish art , and there are a number of theories. According to the most widely accepted explanation, the Book of Kells was created at the monastery in Iona, and illuminated by at least four different artist-monks, whose names are lost to history. Other art scholars have suggested that the manuscript may have been produced at Lindisfarne (Holy Island) off the coast of Northumberland, then moved to Iona and thence to Kells. Or lastly, it may have been produced at an unidentified Scottish monastery. NOTE: For the world's earliest known illuminated gospel text, please see: the Garima Gospels (390-660) from Ethiopia.

Origins and History of the Book of Kells The greatest achievement of Irish medieval art , the Book of Kells, was formerly held to be earlier than the Lindisfarne Gospels (which are dated approximately from 700 CE) but is now generally assigned to the late eighth or early ninth century. It can only have been made in one of two places: Iona or Kells. It seems probable, though, that due to its resemblances to the Lindisfarne Gospels it was at least begun at Iona (a traditional centre of holy learning and illumination, from where Saint Columba launched his mission to Christianize Scotland and where he was later buried), the base from which Lindisfarne had been colonized about the year 635. Unfortunately, Vikings frequently raided the island, burning the monastery and killing the monks. In 804, after two Viking raids, the monks of Iona fled from their exposed island monastery to Meath, in Ireland. They obtained a grant of land at Cenannus (Kells) and established there the metropolis of the Columban Order.

But they regretted abandoning Iona and made various attempts to resettle there, carrying with them the sacred objects and books of the monastery. Finally in 849 all were brought back to Kells, the great manuscript probably with them. That the manuscript was at Kells two centuries later we know from an entry in the Annals of Ulster (1007). And as it is hardly probable that such a work should have been begun during the troubled years between 804 and 849 (and since most of its decorative art points to a date within the eighth century) it is reasonable to assume that an important part of it had been produced in the scriptorium of Iona before the Viking raids drove the monks to Meath. In any case the most probable date of the Book of Kells is between 760-804 and 815-20; and it is likely that different painters were working at it for several years. Again, in view of A. M. Friend's evidence that in its Canon Tables and Evangelist portraits it has borrowed motifs from the continental Ada Group, these elements must be dated at the earliest about the close of the eighth century.

The removal of the Book of Kells - along with the relics of Saint Columba - to the Irish mainland, failed to secure its safety. In 1007, it was seized by Vikings who plundered its jewelled cover. It was later unearthed in a ditch, miraculously intact with only a few sections missing. After the surrender of the monastery of Kells to the Crown by Abbot Richard Plunket in 1539, the manuscript passed into the hands of one Geralde Plunket of Dublin, possibly a relative of the abbot, and from Plunket to James Ussher; a highly versatile and accomplished scholar of the day, and one of the earliest students of Trinity College, Dublin. Finally the manuscript passed with Ussher's library to Trinity College, where it is today. Who Wrote the Book of Kells? (Scribes, Illustrators)?

At the beginning of the eleventh century the book belonged to the church of Kells and was called "the great gospel of Colum-Cille." This was supposed to be because, the book was written and illuminated during the time of Saint Columba (Saint Columcille) (c.521-97), perhaps even by Columba himself. However, when it is said that the Book of Kells may have been written by Columba it is not meant that he was also the artist from whose pen the elaborate ornamentation of the volume proceeded. Columba was reputed to have been a most industrious, indeed almost fanatical, scribe. But the scribe and the illuminator were seldom the same person. The illuminations were frequently executed much later than the manuscript itself and the original plan of the Book of Kells was apparently so vast that it could not be completed in a short time. The spaces to be decorated were left blank by the scribe. Several painters, possibly at different periods, were employed to fill them; there are, indeed, still to be seen some pages where the ornaments of the framework are unfinished, being only partially sketched in outline.

Furthermore, it is highly unlikely that Columba even wrote the script, since paleographic research shows that the style of Latin script used did not emerge until well after his death. In response, some experts in Irish Art consider it may have been created in 797, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Saint Columba's death. Four Illuminators or Artists The scholar Francoise Henry believes that among the several artists who may have worked on the illumination at different periods four are readily identifiable on stylistic grounds. One artist, she feels, was obviously entrusted with the cruciform cover page known as "the page of the eight circles", the great Chi-Rho, and the initial page of each of the gospels, except the Quoniam. She sees in him "the goldsmith", someone familiar with work in precious metals, in enamel and in niello. The delicacy of his work is impressive, as is his interest in asymmetry. Francoise Henry recognizes another individualist in the portraitist of the three Evangelists, the page composed of square frames, and the Quoniam at the beginning of the Gospel of Saint Luke.

The third is the "illustrator", the author of the Virgin and Child, the Tunc Crucifixerat, and the Temptation. Finally, a fourth artist is responsible for many less important contributions. For more, see: Irish Art in the early Christian Period (Methuen, London, 1940) by Francoise Henry. How the Book of Kells Compares With Other Manuscripts The script employed in the Book of Kells is the beautiful round uncial of all the best Irish manuscripts. It differs little in that feature from the Book of Durrow . But here their similarities cease. The scale of the Book of Kells is different from that of the Book of Durrow, and the mood of its expression is vastly different: the calm, meticulous distinction of the earlier book gives way to a flamboyant, magnificent exuberance; there is nothing of that constrained perfection of order and organization - inherited from the Cathach of Saint Columba (c.610-20) - which mark both the Book of Durrow and the Lindisfarne Gospels. No manuscript we have seen before approaches the Book of Kells for elaborate ornamentation.

Each of the Gospels was prefaced with three pages of full-length decoration - a depiction of the Evangelists' symbol, a portrait of the Evangelist himself, and an Initial Page. In addition, there were extra pages of decoration at two key passages in the text, the incarnation of Christ and the Crucifixion. Last and most unusual of all, a series of narrative illustrations were planned, three of which have survived. In addition, the cover pages have a cruciform composition, followed by a series of porticos framing the Canon Tables. The carpet pages of pure ornament of the Book of Durrow are replaced in the Book of Kells by cruciform pages bearing the symbols of the Evangelists and the same symbols, disposed in various ways over and under the arcades, give the Canon Tables a fantastic appearance. The Chi-Rho introducing the Genealogy of Christ in Saint Matthew is ornamented as richly as the initial pages of the gospels. A continuous chain of ornamentation runs through the text. The capitals at the beginning of each paragraph - two, three, four to a page - are made of brightly coloured entwinements of birds, snakes, distorted men and quadrupeds, fighting or performing all sorts of acrobatic feats.

Other animals wander about the pages between the lines or on top of them. In addition, one of the most striking and unusual features of the Book of Kells is this profusion of animated capitals, a feature of Irish illumination which may owe its origin to the ornamented letters ending in coiled Celtic spirals in the Book of Durrow. Eastern Influence on the Design of the Book of Kells Oriental and particularly Coptic influence is generally recognized throughout the Book of Kells - Coptic clearly in the group of red dots on the robes of the Evangelists Mark and John. Furthermore, the figure of the Virgin and Child seated on a throne surrounded by attending angels appears frequently in Coptic art. Francoise Henry points out a striking analogy between the the Virgin and Child page and a ninth-century Coptic manuscript in the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York (Catalogue of the Manuscripts of the Pierpont Morgan Collection). It is true that the Coptic manuscripts are all, so far as is known, later than the Irish. But Coptic manuscripts of the ninth to the fourteenth centuries were evidently based on a well-established ancient tradition originating in the sixth (or even the fifth) century.

This assumption is supported by an early Coptic binding with a decorative arrangement of broad ribbons and crosses which suggest the existence in the sixth century of full pages of ribbon interlacing. The later Coptic manuscripts which we know probably embody many archaic elements. But it would appear that there must have been a direct connexion between early Irish Christianity and the tradition of Byzantine art decoration seen in the monasteries of Egypt, as well as the highly orientalized Greek Christianity of the south-east Mediterranean. Illuminations in the Book of Kells For all the wealth and variety Irish manuscript illumination has to offer, it is the Book of Kells that is generally recognized as the supreme achievement in this field. Symbols of the Evangelists The emphasis placed on the Evangelists' symbols was unprecedented. In addition to the traditional symbol pages at the start of the Gospels, they featured in the Canon Tables, the portraits and other prefatory sections. They were also used in a number of different ways - sometimes as ornamental motifs, sometimes as heraldic beasts, and sometimes as potent talismans. As such, they underwent a variety of transformations.

In one instance, a peacock's tail becomes attached to a lion's head while, in another, the eagle of St John holds the Gospel in a human hand. Only two of the portraits have survived, providing one of the weaker aspects of the decoration, but the four Initial Pages are superb. In each case, the first letter runs the full length of the page, and the words themselves are completely indecipherable to the untutored eye. Instead, the calligraphy becomes a pretext for a dazzling display of spiral and interlace patterns from La Tene Celtic art designs. It also offers the artist an opportunity to exercise his imagination to the full. On the St John's page, for example, the letters 'c' and 'i' are transformed into a man playing a harp while, on the St Luke's page, the characters 'iam' merge together to become an instrument of torture. Monogram Page (Chi-Ro) and Others The decoration on the pages which mark the incarnation of Christ is even more spectacular. The format of the Monogram Page is similar to the examples in the Lindisfarne and Lichfield manuscripts, but the sheer profusion of detail is astonishing.

Hidden away among the loops and spirals, there are vignettes of cats and mice fighting over a communion wafer, an otter clutching a fish, and a row of angels displaying the Gospels. In most other manuscripts, the Monogram Page provides the sole decoration at this point but, in the Book of Kells, the incarnation passage is commemorated with two other illustrations. There is a splendid Carpet Page - the only one in the Kells' manuscript - and a portrait of Christ. The latter was a great rarity in Insular manuscripts, as was the notion of adding decoration to the Crucifixion passage. Sadly, this is one of the sections of the book that was never completed. There is an ornamental Initial Page, but this faces a blank sheet where, doubtless, a depiction of the Crucifixion was planned. The narrative illustrations hint at a new 'figurative' direction in Celtic art. With their preference for abstract or stylized forms, Celtic craftsmen usually shied away from themes of this kind and only a few, isolated examples can be found in the earlier Gospel Books. Here, there are three, and it seems likely that the complete manuscript would have included several more.

The surviving illustrations depict the Temptation of Christ, the Arrest, and the Virgin and Child. The latter is particularly interesting, partly because it is the earliest-known version of this subject in an Insular manuscript, and partly because it demonstrates the hesitancy of an artist working in an unfamiliar genre. The figures of the Virgin, the Infant Christ and the attendant angels were probably borrowed from an Eastern icon, but they sit uneasily beside the more obviously Celtic elements - the writhing beasts in the border, the beard-tuggers in the semicircular insets, and the savage head on the back of the Virgin's throne. Celtic Style Designwork For the origins and history of Celtic Designs , the evolution of motifs such as Celtic Interlace Designs , zoomorphic patterns and symbols including Celtic Knots and Celtic Crosses , all part of the heritage of the Ancient Celts, see Celtic Culture . Legacy There is no question but that the Book of Kells is Ireland's finest example of Biblical art and its richest illuminated manuscript in graphic invention, colour and fantasy. Nevertheless, its overpowering brilliance should not blind us to the quiet distinction, elegant restraint and sensibility of its earlier cousin, the Book of Durrow.

Both have their place: one, in a sense, the high point of controlled beauty, almost an artistic understatement; the other a sumptuous, baroque conflagration with, nevertheless, a tight architectural structure. And both share those peculiar characteristics that set them apart from the illuminated work of other cultures and other areas, and which curiously relate them in spirit to the visual approach and the visual appetites of the exploring artists of the present period in the twentieth century - a thousand years and more since the dates of their production. Other Irish Illuminated Gospel Books The Book of Kells is one of a number of illuminated books created by Irish artists in monastries in Ireland, Scotland and England. These illustrated texts, with their covers richly ornamented with precious metalwork , comprise the foremost examples of early Christian art.

Other manuscripts include: the Codex Usserianus Primus (600-610), Book of Dimma (c.620), Lindisfarne Gospels (700), Codex Amiatinus (715), Echternach Gospels (715), Lichfield Gospels (785), Book of Armagh (807), Book of MacRegol (810), Book of Deer (early 9th century), the Book of MacDurnan (910), and the Book of Dun Cow (1080). Celtic Art - Book of Kells - Illuminated Manuscript Celtic Art > Book of Kells Celtic Knotwork Celtic Cross Claddagh Ring The Book of Kells: Celtic Art's Most Magnificent Masterpiece Way back before books were mass-produced by colossal press machines, every letter and every illustration of every book in existence was created by hand. For religious works, this process was taken to an elaborate extreme in the form of illuminated manuscripts, handcrafted embellishments of religious texts brought to life in the monasteries of medieval Europe.

Having planned out the elaborate illustrations beforehand, the artistsï¿½generally recruited from the ranks of the shockingly talented monks residing in the monasteryï¿½copied the religious text letter by letter, employing the most ornamental calligraphic scripts of the day. The pages themselves consisted of vellum, calfskins specially prepared and finely glazed in order to become an ideal surface to accept the application of colored inks. Then the monks painted the illustrations themselves onto each page: complex border designs, decorated initials, religious symbols, stylized animals, and portraits of saints and the religious figures discussed in the text. The illuminated manuscript was by definition one of a kind, a treasure to be preserved in perpetuity within the halls of the monastery, and thenceforth took on a life of its own. There are dozens of world-famous, centuries-old illuminated manuscripts in the world that have survived to the present dayï¿½and then there is the Book of Kells. The Book of Kells is arguably the premier example of this form of religious devotion. It stands alone as the most magnificent masterpiece of Celtic art ever created. Illuminated manuscripts have inspired many viewers to comment on their exquisite beauty with words of awe and amazement.

The following is attributed to twelfth-century scholar Giraldus Cambrensis: "Fine craftsmanship is all about you, but you might not notice it. Look more keenly at it and you will penetrate to the very shrine of art. You will make out intricacies, so delicate and subtle, so exact and compact, so full of knots and links, with colors so fresh and vivid that you might say that all this was the work of an angel and not of a man." Another often-repeated quote comes from historical novelist Umberto Eco, who called the Book of Kells "the product of a cold-blooded hallucination." Inside the Book of Kells The manuscript contains the complete text of three of the Gospelsï¿½Matthew, Mark and Lukeï¿½and partial text of the Gospel of John. In addition there are prefatory materials, including partial lists of Hebrew names contained in the gospels, the Breves causae (summaries of the gospels) and canon tables, prepared by Eusebius of Caesarea, which provide an index showing where in the gospels certain incidents in the life of Christ can be found.

The gospel text presented in the Book of Kells is a mix of two different translations of the Bible: the Vulgate, a Latin translation completed by St. Jerome in 384 A.D., predominates, but excerpts from the Old Latin translation are also present. Currently the book consists of 339 pages (or folios) of thick, glazed vellum; experts have estimated that over the centuries, approximately 30 pages have been lost. But enough about the text, since it is in the illustrations that the Book of Kells truly shines. For an illuminated manuscript, the Book of Kells employs an unusually wide range of colors, including red, yellow, blue, pink, green, purple, and lilac. The pigments for the inks were culled from sources throughout Europe and around the world. The most costly ink used, said to be the blue-colored pigment, was imported from Afghanistan. The illustrations in the manuscript can be quite small, as in the case of illuminated initial capitals (see the photograph above), or they may occupy a full page. Some of the images are humorous and playful: figures of animals, angels or men may peer out at the reader from behind letters, or dangle between margins of text.

Some of the larger images are famous all by themselves. There are full-page portraits, for example, of Matthew and John (folios 28v and 291v) directly opposite the first passages of their respective gospels. An image of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus (folio 29v) is the first representation of Mary in a western manuscript. No page of the Book of Kells is more captivating (or more justly famous) than the Chi Ro page, folio 34r. Chi and Ro, the first two letters of the word Christ in Greek, are rendered here in excruciating detail (see photo). This page probably contributed to the medieval notion that the manuscript had to be the work of angels, because only angels could have created illustrations so precise. On this page, in a single area measuring approximately a quarter inch square, 158 interlacements have been countedï¿½some of which are distinguishable only with the aid of a magnifying glass.

Folios such as this one, covered with illuminations and containing minimal text (if any at all), are referred to as ï¿½carpet pages.ï¿½ The manuscript also stands as the pinnacle of artistic achievement in another area, that of calligraphy. The style of calligraphy used in the Book of Kells is known as insular majuscule. This style evolved from the Roman Half Uncial style, the standard for Latin manuscripts at the time of St. Patrick (the fifth century A.D.). The followers of St. Patrick learned the Roman Half Uncial, which in their hands became influenced by Celtic artistic tradition. The result was Irish Uncial script. When scribes added an exaggerated serif to the style around the sixth century, the style known as insular majuscule was born. Experts have identified the handiwork of at least three scribes who contributed their calligraphic talents to various sections of the Book of Kells. Each of the three scribes is distinctive in his use of ink colors, the number of lines of text on a page, and use of miniscule versus majuscule script. These three scribes are known as Hand A, Hand B, and Hand C.

The Origins and History of the Book of Kells The controversy surrounding the birthplace of the Book of Kells centers on two possible areas, both former sites of monasteries: Iona, an island off Mull in western Scotland; and Kells, in Irelandï¿½s county Meath, about forty miles northwest of Dublin. St. Columba (also known as St. Colum Cille) founded the monastery of Iona circa 561, but following an invasion by Vikings in 806, the monks fled to Kells, where the two monasteries were united. It is thought that the Book of Kells was created around the time of this unification. The manuscript remained at Kells for the better part of 200 years, until 1006. At that time, the annals of Ulster record that the book was stolen. A cover made of gold encrusted with precious gems once adorned the Book, but the thieves tore the cover off and kept it, burying the remainder of the manuscript; this buried portion was recovered about three months later. The 30 missing folios of the manuscript may have been lost in connection with its theft.

There followed an unbroken period of residence at Kells until 1541, at which time the Catholic Church seized it for protection. Finally, in 1661, Henry Jones, the Bishop of Meath, presented the manuscript to the Library of Trinity College, University of Dublin, where it is housed today. How to See the Book of Kells The Book of Kells is on display in the Old Library in Trinity College, located in the City Centre of Dublin. The Book of Kells is kept in its own glass case, the manuscript opened to exhibit one specific spread of folios at a time; thus, visitors can view only two pages of the manuscript on any given day. The Old Library is open Monday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday (June-September), 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Sunday (October-May), 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

For Further Information The Book of Kells: An Illustrated Introduction to the Manuscript in Trinity by Bernard Meehan Bernard Meehan holds the position of Keeper of Manuscripts at Trinity College, and provides a literate and definitive discussion of this Celtic art masterpiece. This edition includes 111 color plates of the folios of the Book of Kells, including numerous detail photographs that allow you to see the exquisite designs up close. Celtic Art: From Its Beginnings to the Book of Kells by Ruth Megaw, Vincent Megaw Far more than just an art book, Celtic Art also includes information on history, timelines, and Celtic discoveries. The Megaws present expert interpretations of the artwork and symbolism without getting bogged down in the New Age mysticism that is the downfall of many other books on this topic. If you already own books on Celtic art and are tired of the same old photos, you’ll be pleased to know that the Megaws have gathered photos of artifacts not featured in other books. Excellent explanations of how Celtic art styles and motifs evolved, and how they changed throughout history. Features 24 color and 448 black and white illustrations.

About the Images The photographs of folios from the Book of Kells displayed on this website are in the public domain, and can be used without permission. What is the History of the Book of Kells? What is the History of the Book of Kells? mattstone.blogs.com Main Image: The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript of the Gospel book containing the four Gospels written in red, yellow, purple and black ink. The Book of Kells is considered as Ireland’s national treasure and the finest example of illuminated manuscript of medieval Europe. The Book of Kells was an elaborate and sacred work used during special occasions of the church when it was kept on the altar. As such it was not designed to serve any educational purpose of daily use and study. Now the Book of Kells is being reproduced in facsimile edition to make it accessible worldwide. Content What is the History of the Book of Kells? The Book of Kells was developed on the Iona island which lies between Scotland and Ireland. But it derives its name from the Abbey of Kells, situated in the Irish Midlands, where the book was kept from the 9th century till the 16th century.

The original book consisted about 350 leaves each measuring 33cm by 25 cm. The book contains the four Gospels as taken from Saint Jerome’s Latin text and also includes prefaces and summaries of the text. The original cover of the book was decorated with gold and precious jewels. The Book of Kells was shifted to the library of Trinity College, Dublin in 19661 and is easily accessible to the public. How was the Book of Kells Created? The Book of Kells was produced by Celtic monks in ca.800 A.D. The text has been taken mainly from the Vulgate with some passages drawn from the Vetus Latina which was the one of the earliest versions of the Bible. The book is regarded as the masterpiece of Western calligraphy using the unique technique of Insular illumination. The Book of Kells consists of the four Gospels in Latin text and calligraphed in a complex and elaborate script. The book is lavishly illustrated with nearly ten colors. What is the Use of the Book of Kells? The Book of Kells has a sacramental purpose when it is generally kept on the high altar in the church. The book is generally used, during Mass, for reading the Gospel.

Though many a times the reader would actually be reciting the gospel from his memory rather than reading from the Book of Kells. Interestingly the Book of Kells seems to have been kept at the sacristy, a place where the articles used during Mass were kept rather than at the monastic library. The way the book was composed and retained also showed the importance given to the aesthetic value of the book over its practical use. How is the Book of Kells being reproduced in Modern Times? In order to make the Book of Kells accessible to others, the concerned officials of the Trinity College allowed for the reproduction of the book. The work was undertaken in 1986 by Urs Duggelin, a Swiss publisher who was reputed to reproduce rare illuminated manuscripts. The book was photographed with the help of a unique machine and then master craftsmen and lithographers worked to reproduce a fine facsimile ( latin word meaning “Make it the same”) of the original. The initial facsimile edition of the book costed $ 18,000 and was restricted to 1,480 copies for worldwide distribution.

External References The Book of Kells - Dublin Visits The Book of Kells Price On Call Specifications Opening Hours Mon - Sat (Jun - Sep) 9am - 6pm Mon – Sat (Oct – May) 9:30am - 5pm Sun (Jun – Sep) 9:30am - 6pm* Sun (Oct – May) 12pm - 4:30pm Address Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin College Green Dublin 2, Ireland Ticket Adult: €10 Concession: €9 Family: €20 Group: €9* School Group: €2 per student** Description The Book of Kells Guide World’s Most Famous and Oldest Books Completed in 800 AD, the Book of Kells is the world’s most famous and oldest book. The book is Ireland’s most lavish and glorious of Ireland’s illuminated manuscripts. The book is an exquisite copy of the first four gospels in Latin. The vellum (calfskin) manuscript contains transcriptions of the four Gospels, lavishly illustrated and ornamented. It is the most elaborate manuscript of its kind to survive from the early Middle Ages.

The scribes and artists who created the Book were Columbian monks who lived in a monastery on the remote island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland. The monastery was founded late in the sixth century by an Irish monk, St Colm Cille. At the time the book was produced, Irish monks were renowned throughout the rest of Europe for their work as scribes and illustrators. The Book of Kells contains 680 pages (or 340 folios). Just two of the pages are without ornament, while about thirty folios, including some major decorated pages, have been lost. Book of Kells at the Trinity College Library The Book is the most famous manuscript in the Library of Trinity College Dublin where it is permanently on display. The Book of Kells is kept in a low-lit gallery with only two pages displayed at a time, although they are turned after some period. The aura and grandeur of this highly illustrated manuscript cannot keep visitors and tourists at bay as they come pouring in from all parts of the world to have a glimpse of this historical script. 9th Century Manuscript No book evokes such passion among art lovers, as this 9th century illuminated manuscript.

The perfect surroundings of the Long Hall which contains over 200,00 of Trinity’s oldest books, is where you will find the Book of Kells, as well as other fine relics of Ireland’s scholarly history. Exhibitions and Library Shop open seven days a week Feature List Illuminated Manuscripts: History, Designs Illuminated Manuscripts Decorated initial from the Book of Kells (c.800). Trinity College Library. DESIGNS OF THE ANCIENT CELTS For the history & development patterns and decorative art motifs employed by the ancient Celts, in metalwork, ceramics and other artworks please see: Note: According to radiocarbon dating tests, the world's oldest illuminated gospel manuscripts are the Ethiopian Garima Gospels (c.390-660 CE) and the Syrian Rabbula Gospels (c.586 CE). See also Early Christian Art (150-550). God Speaking to Prophet Jeremiah Winchester Bible (1160-75). Types of Religious Gospel Manuscripts The rise of the manuscript coincided with the spread of Christianity, and many of the early texts were produced specifically to aid in the process of conversion.

In the Celtic areas of western Europe, the most important kind of text was the Gospel Book. This came in a wide variety of formats. There were the portable 'Pocket Gospels', which missionaries carried with them on their evangelical expeditions; there were the scholarly editions, used for study and research in monastic libraries; and there were the lavishly embellished types, complete with full-page religious paintings and decorative calligraphy. These were designed to be seen rather than read. In most cases, they were either on open view on the high altar, or displayed during feast days and special processions. Most were written and ilustrated by anonymous medieval artists . Detail from Li Livres dou Sante (1290) depicting a Monk tasting wine from a barrel. By Aldobrandino of Siena. EVOLUTION OF CELTIC ART Celtic Style Christian Art . Introduction One of the most famous forms of Medieval art , Irish illustrated manuscripts like the Book of Durrow (c.650-680) and the Book of Kells (c.800), were some of the first decorated Christian gospel texts, dating from the early seventh century CE.

In due course, they were followed by Medieval Christian artworks such as Carolingan and Byzantine illuminated manuscripts. Influenced by early illustrated texts from the Coptic Christians of Egypt, these illuminated manuscripts went on to influence Islamic art in the form of painted Persian manuscripts and calligraphic artworks. This Insular art form of book illustration , which emerged from a fusion of early Biblical art , traditional Celtic culture and design, with Anglo-Saxon techniques, took place as Irish missionaries, monasteries and monastic art spread across Ireland (eg. Kildare, Durrow, Clonmacnois, Clonfert, Kells and Monasterboice), Scotland (eg. Iona) and England (eg. Lindisfarne off the coast of Northumbria) in the seventh and eighth centuries. Ultimately, this Hiberno-Saxon style created some of the most outstanding works in the history of Irish art of the Middle Ages. These illuminated manuscripts were a mixture of religious text, copied from the bible, illustrated throughout by numerous decorative embellishments, of either abstract or representational art . Historiated letters, Celtic crosses , trumpet ornaments, rhombuses, pictures of birds and animals, were all used.

Sometimes whole pages would contain nothing but illustrations. These so-called carpet pages would typically preface each Gospel and usually contained an intricate set of geometric or Celtic interlace designs , sometimes framing a central cross. These books were not all written in an identical style. Moreover, the artist monks who worked on them displayed varying levels of skill or familiarity with traditional Celtic art as well as Continental and Byzantine art. In general, Celtic artists were less comfortable creating representational art than they were with more abstract art . There is also considerable variation in the colours used both for the text and the illustrations. Some books were bound in leather, others in wood and leather. The amount of metalwork , in the form of clasps, attachments and other adornments also varied. Some religious manuscripts had none, others (eg. Lindisfarne Gospels) were adorned with gold and silver - even gems. The highly ornate manuscripts were typically used as ceremonial Bibles or Gospels. They would be kept on the altar, rather than in the monastery library, and would be used for reading aloud and in processions on feast days.

Because of their religious significance as well as their precious metalwork, many of these books were extremely valuable and great efforts were made by the monks to preserve them from pillage. Some (eg. Codex Amiatinus), were even presented to the Pope. How They Were Made The golden era of Irish illuminated manuscripts was roughly 650-1100 CE. The more important books, all produced in Irish or Anglo-Irish monasteries, contained the Gospels or other holy scripture from the Bible, all written in Latin. To praise the word of God and to help educate and inspire the monasteries' growing flock of Christian converts these books had to be made as beautiful as possible. However, producing an illustrated book during the medieval era of the seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth centuries was no easy feat. Viking raids and freezing temperatures turned the making of these Celtic Christian artworks into an arduous, sometimes dangerous activity. Religious art of this type was decorated to varying degrees and in varying styles, and displays a wide variety of colour combinations. Some manuscripts used black or purple as a background for their folios (pages), others used lighter colours or no colour.

Decorations might be created using different combinations of red, yellow, green, blue, violet, purple, and turquoise blue. Some even used gold text. Although over time much of the colour and beauty of these artworks has faded, they must have appeared dazzling to the monks and people of the day. Even now, the fantastic Celtic intricacy of the decorative spirals, rhombuses, carpet pages and miniature pictures testifies to the outstanding creativity of this early religious art. Each Page Hand-Made There were no printing machines during these medieval times, so each folio or page had to be written by hand, making each manuscript a unique piece of biblical art. Nor was there any paper, so all the text was copied onto animal skins - either vellum (derived from the Old French Vélin, for "calfskin") or parchment (from sheepskin). Lime was applied to the skin to remove its hair, after which it was stretched onto wooden frames to be dried and smoothed, before being cut and folded into sheets. Once the vellum or parchment was prepared, the monastery's calligraphers and scribes began the laborious task of copying the chosen religious text, word for word.

Irish artists from among the monks would then begin the illustrations. Thus one manuscript might be worked on simultaneously by a group of monks, all under the supervision of a chief scribe. Novice monks typically did the mundane tasks of preparing the skins, making the goose quill pens, and mixing pigments for the artist-monks. The more accomplished of them might be permitted to paint basic designs, or to lay gold leaf. After some years of performing these low-level tasks, he would be assigned the responsibility of designing a page on his own. Meanwhile, the intricate embellishment of the holy manuscript would be undertaken by experienced scribes and artist-monks. It was painstaking work, with elaborate illuminations requiring weeks to complete. The size of the pages varied from book to book, but typically was about 12 by 14 inches. Moreover, the illustrations - especially in the more ornate and highly decorated manuscripts like the Book of Durrow, the Lindisfarne Gospels or the Book of Kells - were so detailed that they were only just visible to the human eye. Many of the most intricate designs were first sketched on a large wax tablet before being recopied in miniature onto the vellum.

At the same time, other monks would be working on the design work of the book's cover, adding motifs or complex decorative patterns. These decorations would be further embellished by the addition of jewellery or precious metals (gold and silver). Typically, such lavish ornamentation was confined to books containing the Gospels, which would then be used on the altar for ceremonial occasions, or carried in procession on important Feast days during the religious calendar. When completed and also when being prepared, these valuable illuminated manuscripts were closely guarded within the monastery, to prevent their seizure by Viking and other marauders. Even so, many precious books were stolen or pillaged for their gems and precious metals. Monasteries along the coast were repeatedly attacked, and their devoted inhabitants butchered by Vikings. The danger of this happening often meant that some books (eg. the Book of Kells) had to be kept hidden for long periods, thus preventing them from being completed. Typical Content of Illuminated Manuscripts Most Gospel Books contained a certain amount of prefatory material, followed by the four Gospels. The introductory matter would often include a prologue by St Jerome relating to the Latin text. It also covered the arrangement of the Gospels themselves.

During the medieval era, the verse and chapter divisions of the Bible had not yet been devised, making it hard for monks and priests to navigate around the text. Early Christian scholars tackled this problem in several ways, producing a variety of synopses and indexes. The most influential of these were the Canon Tables, which divided the text into numbered sections and enabled the reader to cross-refer from one Gospel to the next. The system was invented in the early 4th century by Eusebius of Caesarea, the biographer and personal adviser of Emperor Constantine. From an early date, these Canon Tables were presented in attractively painted arcades, becoming one of the focal points of the manuscript. Decorations & Illuminations From the artists of Late Antiquity, the Celts borrowed the format of two of the standard forms of illustration in the Gospel Books. The Canon Tables, as mentioned, were traditionally displayed in an architectural setting, with the references from the Gospels listed between a series of columns. In addition, they adopted the notion of prefacing each of the Gospels with a portrait of the relevant Evangelist.

The Celts, with their preference for abstract or stylized art , found it hard to reproduce the illusionist naturalism of either the architecture or the human figures. Instead, they flattened out the forms and rendered them in a semi-ornamental manner. The images lost none of their vigour through being transformed in this way. If anything, they gained a new potency. In some of the early Gospel Books, the Evangelist was represented by a symbol rather than a portrait. These symbols were based on two prophetic passages in the Bible. One of them described a vision which had appeared to Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1, 5-10) and the other referred to a scene from the Day of Judgement. In both cases, the text described 'four living creatures', which early Christians interpreted as a symbolic reference to the Evangelists. They took the form of "four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within; and they rest not day and night, saying holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty" (Revelations IV, 6-8). By convention, these four creatures also referred to Christ's incarnation (the winged man), His majesty (the lion, a regal beast), His role as the Saviour of mankind (the calf or ox, traditionally sacrificial animals) and the Ascension (the soaring eagle). The most widely accepted attribution of the symbols was laid down by St Jerome. He linked Matthew with the winged man, Mark with the lion, Luke with the ox or calf, and John with the eagle. Once again, however, the Celts did not fall into line immediately with this proposal. In the Book of Durrow, for instance, the lion was employed as the symbol of St John. Celtic artists also portrayed the symbols in a number of different ways. Sometimes, they showed them in a comparatively realistic way while, at other times, they chose to emphasize their divine nature by adding wings and certain human characteristics.

Thus, the paws or talons of the animals might be replaced by hands, while the creatures themselves were shown standing upright, in a human posture. In a few rare instances, the symbols might also be combined. The most celebrated example of this occurred in the Trier Gospels, where the four emblems were represented as a tetramorph. This was a composite figure, combining the head of a man with the hind quarters of the other three animals. The remaining illustrations in the early Gospel Books offered much greater scope for the use of traditional La Tene Celtic art designs . The Carpet Pages, for instance - leaves of parchment given over entirely to ornamental designs - were not invented by Celtic artists, but they became one of the outstanding features of Hiberno-Saxon Insular illumination. The concept was developed in the East, where the artists of several cultures were expressly prohibited from representing any living form, but it also suited the Celtic predilection for abstract patterns. The same could be said for the decorative calligraphy, which became increasingly elaborate as the ambitions of Celtic illuminators increased. Once again, the practice of highlighting certain sections of text by using an enlarged or ornamental letter was already long-established.

In the early Gospel Books, however, this trend evolved beyond all recognition. The scale and complexity of the decorations continued to grow until, in manuscripts such as the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells, a complete page might be filled by a single word or a short phrase. In time, these virtuoso passages became associated with specific sections of text. The most spectacular examples of calligraphy were reserved for the Initial Pages - the folios with the opening words of each Gospel - and the Monogram Page (Chi/Rho). The latter refers to the early passage in Matthew's Gospel, which follows a lengthy list description of Christ's descent from Abraham. This starts with an account of Christ's birth (Matt. I, 18), which many churchmen regarded as the true beginning of the New Testament story. For this reason, artists took pains to make it the most sumptuous page in the entire book. It is commonly termed the Monogram Page, because the text opens with Christ's name, which was normally abbreviated as 'XP' in most manuscripts.

Early Irish Illuminated Manuscripts in Context Of the wealth of Irish manuscripts which has come down to us from the early centuries of the Christian era (c.500-850), two in particular, the Book of Durrow (c.650) and the Book of Kells (c.800), stand as monuments of decorative art in that critical period in the history of West European culture. The former dates from the dawn of that rich flowering of Christian art in Ireland, the influence of which was to spread so far into continental Europe during the next two centuries; the latter, from the time at which this art had attained its fullest and most idiosyncratic development. Neither was completely cut off from what had gone before, nor from what was to follow. Still, no work of parallel quality in similar character to the former has come down to us. Both are distinctly different from the styles of Carolingian Art (c.750-900), Ottonian Art (c.900-1050), and the Italian High Renaissance (c.1490-1530), which stand historically between them and us.

And, paradoxically enough, it is just the features which distinguish those two gospel-books from illuminated manuscripts nearer in time to our period that bring them closest to the live art of the present century. Today we find that the intensity, imagination and freedom with which the script in both these books is handled, the sharp, clear outlines of the illuminations and the epigrammatic concision of image are what particularly appeal to our taste. The characteristics which writers - schooled to a nineteenth-century view - criticized most sharply offer us little difficulty today: little that is aesthetically unfamiliar. For example, as Elfrida Saunders says in English Illumination. There is no attempt at representation of solidity and the colour is quite arbitrary. Hair may be painted blue or even different colours in stripes... An effect of broken colour is aimed at, even in figure representations: the clothes form either a harlequin pattern of patches or stripes of different colours...

In these manuscripts, the same awkwardnesses due to an entire ignorance of linear perspective are seen as in early Egyptian tomb-paintings; a body is represented in full view while the sides and feet are shown; or a side view of the nose is placed on a face which is turned frontwards." Our present-day acceptance of such a free handling of compositional elements in visual art is the fruit of a struggle carried on during the first half of the 20th-century by artists who realized the importance of breaking from the strait-jacket of representational conventions inherited from the classical and Renaissance worlds, and the possibilities of expression such a liberation would open up. The Irish Abstract artists of the Book of Durrow, the Book of Kells and other related manuscripts came to this freedom of outlook naturally. It was part of their heritage. They had no strait-jacket out of which they had to break. At the western extremity of Europe, they had few links with classical Greece or Rome. Their art was a natural growth by assimilation. We recognize in the spiral designs and "trumpet patterns", so characteristic of it, the influence of their Celtic metal-working forbears.

We see in the interlace, the fret and the ecclesiastical iconography, evidence of an acquaintanceship with Syrian and Coptic manuscripts, either brought to Ireland by the missionaries or seen by the scribes abroad. Later, in the interlaced animal motifs, we have an unquestionable response on the part of the Irish illuminators to the same features in Germanic or Celtic decoration - different as they become in their Irish adaptation from both these apparent sources. Basic to all this, and indeed the essential discipline of the Irish illuminator's art, is their scrupulous and individual script which they clearly regarded as an aesthetic expression in itself, not merely as a utilitarian vehicle. In no other part of Europe and at no other period of European art has script been treated with greater intensity, imagination, and freedom than in Anglo-Saxon Insular book illumination from the seventh to the ninth century. Here alone a level of perfection is reached that can be compared with Islamic or Chinese calligraphy ; judged by this standard all pre-Carolingian continental book illustration looks poor and clumsy.

"The significance of the Irish script as a cultural symptom", Professor Ludwig Bieler writes in Ireland, Harbinger of the Middle Ages, "emerges most clearly when its genesis is compared with that of other 'national scripts' of the early Middle Ages. All the others - the Visigothic script in Spain, the Beneventan script in southern Italy, the local types of the Merovingian kingdom, the Rhaetian and Alemmanic scripts in the districts of Chur and St. Gall, and the less characteristic scripts of northern Italy and western Germany - can be understood as attempts at normalizing the degenerate cursive script of late antiquity in the hope of thus producing a serviceable book-hand.

The Irish script, it seems, was a deliberate creation out of elements of several scripts inherited from antiquity which the earliest missionaries had brought with them." Professor Luce points out the fusion which the scribes achieved in the assimilation of their heritage and their borrowings: "The script element taken over from the ancient world is integrated in an ornamental style that had been developed to a high point by the Celts of the Iron Age." And he stresses the fact that this ornamentation was an art in its own right and not, like later ornament, a mere accessory to figurative representation. This is the essential individuality of Irish illumination throughout its great period: the complete integration of every factor in the book, in spite of a jealous discreteness in each detail, given its character by discipline of the script. Even before the Book of Durrow, we have an austere exemplification of this in the Cathach of Saint Columba (c.610-620). This preciously conceived book boasts little ornament beyond simple hollow initials ending in small spirals and surrounded, in certain instances, by lines of dots which introduce each psalm. According to the paleographer Lowe, the Cathach "represents the pure milk of Irish calligraphy".

And, while it is generally conceded to be the earliest specimen of national script in Ireland, it already announces in its integrity, its clarity and the concreteness of its detail, the great works (more colourful if no less intense) to come after it. Today the clarity, intensity and definition of these masterworks of Irish illumination (and of others such as the Book of Armagh, the Stowe Missal, and the Book of the Dun Cow) may come as a surprise to those who associate the term "Celtic" with the vague, the misty and the mystical, as the result of a concept which had its roots in the beginnings of the Romantic revival in the mid-eighteenth century and its exhaustion in the "Celtic twilight" movement of the 1890s. MS 122 Corpus Christi College Library, Oxford Legacy of Irish Illuminations The cultural significance of these Irish gospel manuscripts should not be underestimated.

Without the devotion of Irish monks and scribes, who - as well as copying biblical texts - also copied many of the secular Greek and Roman works from classical authors such as Homer, Plato and Virgil, part of the world's great culture from Antiquity might have been lost forever during the Barbarian conquest of the Continent, and the Renaissance would never have happened. Irish illuminated manuscripts were the third and final type of early Irish visual art, after the Megalithic Passage Tomb artworks of Newgrange during the Neolithic era and the ornamental gold artifacts of the Irish Bronze Age . Medieval Book Painting: England and the Continent (c.1000-1500) During the course of succeeding centuries, these beautiful book paintings from Irish monasteries were followed by other Biblical (and secular) illustrated books by artist-monks from the Carolingian and Ottonian courts, and also by Byzantine theologians. But the best Medieval manuscript illumination was produced in England and on the Continent during the period 1000-1500 CE.

First came a number of exceptional Romanesque illuminated manuscripts (c.1000-1150), such as the St Albans Psalter, the Bible of St Benigne, the Egbert Psalter, the Winchester Bible and the Moralia Manuscript. After this, painters like Jean Pucelle produced the finest Gothic illuminated manuscripts (1150-1350), including The Belleville Breviary (1323-26, Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris) and The Hours of Jeanne d'Evreux (1324-28, The Cloisters, Metropolitan Museum of Art), as well as other works such as: the Psalter of St Louis, the Bible Moralisee, the Minnesanger Manuscript, the Amesbury Psalter, and Queen Mary's Psalter.

They were followed, during the era of International Gothic illuminations , by masterpieces such as the Brussels Hours, by Jacquemart de Hesdin (c.1355-1414); Les Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry (1413, Musee Conde, Chantilly) by the Limbourg Brothers (fl.1390-1416); and works by the great French artist Jean Fouquet (1420-81).

Question: Where in Scotland was the famous Irish manuscript The Book Of Kells illuminated?
Answer: Iona