Book Of Kells: Illuminated Medieval Manuscript From Monastery On Iona, Scotland

A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com - One of the most important monuments of Irish Christianity and works of Irish-Saxon art is the famous Book of Kells (now in the Trinity College Library in Dublin, Ireland).

The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript probably created by Celtic monks in a monastery on the island of Iona, c. 800 AD.

The Book of Kells is an integral part of an exhibition that attracts over 500,000 visitors to Trinity College in Dublin each year. Image credit:  Jeff Pioquinto/Flickr

The book's name originates from the monastery of Kells, County Meath, Ireland. This magnificent manuscript was brought to Kells following a Viking raid on the monastery on the island of Iona, Scotland, in 806.

The first mention of this work of art can be found in the Annals of Ulster under the year 1007 AD.

Based on the records, 'the great Gospel book of Columcille, the chief relic of the western world, was stolen during the night from the great stone church of Cenannus (Kells).'

The Book of Kells contains the complete text of the Gospels of the New Testament, which means Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and the Gospel of John through John 17:13, written in black, red, purple, and yellow ink in an insular majuscule script, preceded by prefaces, summaries, and concordances of Gospel passages.

Illustration from the Book of Kells. Credit: Wikipedia

The manuscript is in excellent condition, considering its great age, but many pages have suffered some damage to the delicate artwork due to rubbing. The book was probably the product of a major scriptorium, a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to monastic scribes' writing, copying, and illuminating of manuscripts by monastic scribes. It took many years to accomplish the work. However, the book was never finished, and the projected decoration of some pages appeared only in outline.

Additionally, it is believed that some 30 folios of the original manuscript have been lost over the centuries.

Researchers assume the manuscript was created as one book containing all four Gospels, but new research reveals this assumption is false.

The Book of Kells showing the lavishly decorated text that opens the Gospel of John. Credit: Wikipedia

However, a very meticulous analysis conducted by Dr. Bernard Meehan of Trinity College, Dublin, shows that the Book of Kells was initially composed of two separate works up to half a century apart.

Many full-page miniatures beautifully decorate the text of the Book of Kells, and countless miniature painted decorations appear throughout the work. The decoration of the book is famous for combining intricate detail with bold and energetic compositions.

The colorful illustrations and monastic scribes often use purple, lilac, red, pink, green, and yellow.

The decoration of the book is not only limited to the primary pages. Scattered through the text are decorated initials, and various small figures of animals and humans are interconnected with complicated Celtic knots and interlacing patterns.

No earlier surviving manuscript has this massive amount of decoration.

In 2011, the Book of Kells was added to the UNESCO World Records list.

Updated on January 12, 2024

Written by – A. Sutherland  - AncientPages.com Senior Staff Writer

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