Definition of Book of Kells

Between the 7th and 15th centuries, the scribes of the European monasteries played an important role in the cultural diffusion during the difficult and dark centuries of the Middle Ages. In this historical context there is a book that stands out above the rest, the Book of Kells.

Main features

Regarding its content, this manuscript includes the gospels written in Latin. It is made up of 340 folios and it is believed that it was conceived to be read during the Eucharist.

The book begins with prefaces, summaries, and concordances, and only the gospels were written on calfskin (vellum). From the point of view of palaeography the Irish scribes developed a particular and different style, the "Insular" style.

The fact that various decorations were left unfinished or sketched shows that their elaboration it was slow and laborious. Later it has been known that the text was entirely written in iron gall ink, made of you go out made of iron and natural tannin, the ink that will be confirmed as the most used during the Middle Ages.

Its main characteristic is its generous ornamentation full of excellent details. Due to the influence of Coptic Christianity, there are red dots that decorate the letters. The initials are meticulously decorated with details such as interlacing that draw attention to the most important passages.

Another element that distinguishes it are the drawings of all kinds that can be appreciated: from animals such as the bull, the horse, the snake or the peacock, passing by figures Biblical figures such as Christ and the Virgin Mary, even mythological figures such as dragons.

Many other influences such as Byzantine and Armenian can be observed in the text, making it an extremely rich and unique manuscript.

A manuscript with a long history

The Book of Kells was conceived on the island of Iona off the Scottish coast, where the Irish missionary Columban founded a monastery in the middle of the 6th century. It is believed that due to the recurrent Viking attacks the book was not finished on the island itself and had to be moved to the town of Kells, where it continued to be produced.

A thousand years later, back in the seventeenth century, the Archbishop of Armagh deposited the book in the library of the Irish Trinity College, where it is still on display. After an attempt to conservation Around thirty pages were lost and later it was decided that for its better conservation it would have to be divided into four volumes.

In recent years this jewel of the literature medieval has been digitized to the delight of researchers and curious.

Photos: Fotolia - Warren Rosenberg / Elena Schweitzer