The Book of Kells: An Illustrated Introduction to the Manuscript in Trinity College, Dublin

by Bernard Meehan

The Book of Kells is a masterpiece of medieval art—a brilliantly decorated version of the four Gospels with full-page depictions of Christ, the Virgin and the Evangelists as well as a wealth of smaller decorative painting. The strange imagination displayed in the pages, the impeccable technique and the very fine state of preservation make The Book of Kells an object of endless fascination.



This edition reproduces the most important of the fully decorated pages plus a series of enlargements showing the almost unbelievable minuteness of the detail; spiral and interlaced patterns, human and animal ornament—a combination of high seriousness and humor. The text is by Bernard Meehan, the Keeper of Manuscripts at Trinity College, Dublin.

Genres: Art, History, Nonfiction, Religion, Art History, Ireland, Medieval

96 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1994

Reviews

[theredhead_reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book of Kells is super interesting: the illustrations are beautifully detailed with a lot of figures (often impressively intertwined) and bright colors, while really seeming to add more depth and meaning to the text. The fact that it’s still a question when the manuscript was written and illustrated, by who and what origin is has, makes it even more fascinating.

I was however kind of disappointed in the way this book about it was written. Even though it contains a lot of explanations about what’s on the illustrated pages of the book of Kells, it has too many (confusing) references put into the text. Therefore, it’s hard to understand to what image/part they are even referring to (which are quite often parts that are not visible in this book itself, or they are not next to the explanation as usual). This makes it unfortunately both tough to read and understand.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this in the gift shop directly after seeing the actual Book of Kells, in the Trinity College Library in Dublin, Ireland. I wanted to learn more, and this looked like the best option. The 98 illustrations are very eye-catching. But the text keeps making continuous references to actual pages within the Book of Kells, and these page/illustrations are not in this museum guide book.

I understand that this short book can't possibly do justice to the magnificent Book of Kells. But this book should have just stuck to describing the selected images they displayed. I felt like I had to have an actual copy of the Book of Kells itself open as I read these academic descriptions.

The Book of Kells are the 4 gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) transcribed (very ornately) and found in Kells (Meath Co., Ireland), in ~800 AD. The text was copied onto calf vellum by trained scribes, probably on the Scottish island of Iona.

Sometime around the year 806, the manuscript was relocated due to Viking raids that threatened its monastery of origin. The book found its home in the Abbey of Kells in County Meath, Ireland. It rested there for centuries until Oliver Cromwell—English revolutionary and prolific destroyer of historic items—arrived in Ireland. The Book of Kells was sent to Dublin for safety. After the Restoration of the English monarchy (which ruled Ireland at the time), the book was donated to Trinity College Dublin, where it has stayed ever since. Today, it is on view in the library among other priceless works of human history.
(paragraph above copy/paste from: https://mymodernmet.com/book-of-kells...)

Example: Look at the Chi Rho page:
https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/con...
I encourage you to download this image and zoom around inside it to examine details.

This is part of the entire works, available at:
https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/con...
There are 680 pages (340 folios, or leaves)

I highly recommend watching the 2009 animated film The Secret of Kells. It tells a fictional story of the creation of the Book of Kells by an elderly monk Aidan and his young apprentice Brendan, who struggle to work on the manuscript in the face of destructive Viking raids. It was directed by Tomm Moore and nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2009. I just finished watching it. I kept pausing the movie to look up the multiple Irish references. You can simply watch straight through and not feel like you need to do this, but each of these references will reward you with more depth/knowledge.
- Chi Rho Page
- St. Columbkille
- Pangur Ban, the cat
- Crom Cruach
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0485601/

Back to this book I'm reviewing...
Images 5* - excellent reproductions
Text 3* - VERY academic. There are early friendly sections to read, but the cold analysis on most of the later pages make this feel like a research-book.
The constant academic text references to pages/images that are NOT included in this book make me score this at 3.5, and I'll round down.

[Juan Nalerio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lo que leí es tal lo que dice su largo título, una introducción ilustrada al famoso libro de los evangelios realizados por monjes celtas en el siglo IX en Irlanda.
Tuve la oportunidad de ver una de sus páginas en el Trinity College de Dublín-muestran una diferente por día- y es realmente hermoso.
Está muy bueno que se venere y admire un libro como hacen con este bello ejemplar.
Ojalá se tratara así a más libros.

La lectura es una guía para turistas curiosos y cumple su función.

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting 'guidebook' to the Book of Kells. Some illustrations to show what is being described and some text to explain what is being shown. What does the lion / snake / peacock / and so forth represent? It also describes the four scribes who worked on the project--not the men specifically, but their work and technique.

A bit dry but overall very interesting. I wish I had read it before visiting the book in Ireland!

[RainyCraze · Rating 4 out of 5]

An informative read easily done it a day, with plenty of photos of the pages & illustrations to accompany the text. I would have preferred the full history of the Book of Kells at the very beginning, rather than as appendices, so as to better understand why some of the differences & damage appear as they do.

[Danelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable! The next best thing if you can't go see the book in person.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really quick read. Less than 100 pages and almost all have at least one image on them (many take up the whole page).
An overview, not so much of the history of the book as much as the structure and design of it.

[Shawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

My interest in The Book of Kells was revived by its mention in Shirley MacLaine’s work The Camino , which is an account of her Camino walk. In fact, I’ve been kicking myself since 2013, for failing to get a first-hand look at The Book of Kells when I last visited Ireland. This book is exhibited at Trinity College, in Dublin. If this blasted pandemic will abate, I plan to return to Ireland next year to view this iconic document first-hand.

MacLaine’s fantasies associate The Book of Kells with John the Scott (800-877) who MacLaine insists visited her spiritually during her Camino walk, and informed her that he grew up in the place where The Book of Kells was written, an obvious reference to a town in County Meath, Ireland (many scholars contend that The Book of Kells was actually produced on the island of Iona, in Scotland, and later transferred to Kells).

John the Scott eventually moved to France and became very influential in the Carolingian regimes of Charlemagne (748-814) and Charles the Bald (823-877), the former of whom MacLaine insists she was a personal confidant to, in a past life, which she supposedly re-lived during her Camino journey in 1994. Irrespective of MacLaine’s outlandish assertions, the mention of The Book of Kells, in association with the Camino, revived my keen interest to, not only see the book, but also to visit Kells and the mysterious Scottish Island of Iona. Travel is rendered so much more enjoyable when we accentuate it with historic mysteries.

What is The Book of Kells?

The Book of Kells was produced between the 7th and 9th centuries and is a later presentation of the Latin text of the gospels, based upon the Vulgate (the version of the Bible completed by St Jerome in 384 AD). The Book of Kells is very intriguing because of its lavish decorations and symbolic embellishments that are, as of yet, not fully understood. Scholars believe The Book of Kells was transferred to Kells because of numerous Viking raids that plagued the Scottish island of Iona. By the 17th century, the book found its way to the current place of safekeeping at Trinity College, Dublin.

The Book of Kells was apparently used in liturgical practices, with the colorful graphics displayed near the altar, so that a glimpse of “The Word” might be afforded to the illiterate congregations of the time. The subservience of the uneducated could be augmented by visual intimidation, exacerbated by the presence of such a colorful and mysterious volume. The intricate designs incorporated into the graphics are obviously intended to present an esoteric aura.

In modern times, The Book of Kells has provided fertile ground for much spiritual postulation, particularly of a Celtic bent; and this is no doubt the reason we find mention of it in MacLaine’s publicity writing. Some scholars have discovered that graphics in The Book of Kells are actually pictorials of ancient stone carvings or metalwork of the time. The religious figures depicted in the book are seen to have bulging eyes and sometimes weird poses, such as interlocking legs. There are also strange combinations of human and animal forms.


Men interlocking legs and pulling each other’s beards on folio 188r of The Book of Kells.

This work, by Bernard Meehan, provides beautiful photography of many of the pages from The Book of Kells. There is such intricate detail in these pages that one can study and gaze at them for long periods, continually discovering new and varied compositions. This sort of detail leads one to conclude that the intent of The Book of Kells transcends the mere goal of providing a pictorial presentation of the Gospels for the illiterate, as suggested by Pope Gregory the Great (540-604). Quite the contrary, images of such great complexity only increase the difficulty of achieving a literal understanding of the pictographs.


Illustration from The Book of Kells

Why the Complexity?

The enigmatic figures in The Book of Kells are mysterious, puzzling, and difficult to understand. Such complex imagery may have carried a more diabolical purpose: to intimidate, mystify and baffle into submission those who find themselves intellectually overwhelmed by such abstraction. Like an ancient book of magic, The Book of Kells likely sat beside the altar, glaring at the congregation, like a talisman, as priests, garbed in their stately robes, sought to bedazzle parishioners by picking it up from time to time, as a feigned reference for some bizarre incantation.

Certainly, this is the same function of the ornate cathedrals: to impress the carnal into subservience. But is this not the integration of idolatry into written form? Certainly, the scholarly proof that many of these graphics are actually copies of Celtic statuary should so imply. Does the prominence of such elaborate materialism, such as adorns these pages and the Catholic cathedrals all around the world, not actually thwart one’s ability to focus inwardly? Who among us is not distracted by ostentatious ornamentation?

Certainly, the uneducated and indoctrinated masses could be easily enticed by such a mysterious volume. Ornamentation obviously led them to see the natural beauty of the forests and fields as subservient to such man-made adornments; and subsequently give their ear over to religious instruction. The intensity of such adornment tended to blind those who felt less worthy and caused them to bequeath all spiritual matters to the purview of the elite, who consisted of those tasked by the monarch or the church hierarchy for the very purpose of mesmerizing the masses. It never seems to dawn on the working classes that Jesus never left any writings, only a spoken or enacted Word..

Is There More Here Than Meets the Eye?

This author, Bernard Meehan, explains that some view The Book of Kells meditatively; such that it can mean anything that a reader might be inspired by it to mean. And certainly, this artwork does possess such an ability. Gazing at the intermixtures of human and animal forms, as well as the deeply detailed surrounding designs, one might wonder whether the symbology represents the diversity of an on-going creation, with countless intermixtures, emerging shapes, and varying contortions of life forms, all writhing about in the universe, like the shape-shifting ocean of Stanishaw Lem’s work Solaris . Could it be that “The Transfiguration of Christ” means much more than your Sunday School teacher ever revealed?

Certainly, the implication may be gained from The Book of Kells that Christ is the seed of all diversified life forms. The interpretation of one folio is of the apostles being exhorted by Christ to be “as wise as serpents and as simple as doves.” The association of the serpent with wisdom redefines “the temptation” as a call toward learning and knowledge. It redefines “the fall of man” as the beginning of a progression out of animality; away from being a mere pet, and towards a capacity for harboring righteousness by freewill.

To be “as simple as doves” implies a willingness of self-sacrifice for the greater good. The dove was the animal that Noah sacrificed, or risked, into the flooded world, in order to gain information. Similarly, Jesus is a messenger, risked into a world flooded with evil, to bring information to mankind. But, unlike the dove, Jesus returned, transfigured. As the dove was sent out to observe the alluvial world rising out of the watery abyss, so Christ was sent out from the spiritual realm to confront the progress of humanity, embarking like an “Adam” and returning greatly matured like a “Jesus”. Aren’t we all, in fact, recovering from a flood of evil?

Pantheistic Notions

In The Book of Kells we find depictions of human heads in the mouths of beasts and beings bearing intermixtures of human and animal parts. Communion discs are observed in the mouths of mice and other animals, which then transition into human anatomy. The Books of Kells tends to display, if not all living things, then certainly a wide variety of them, as all emanating from the Godly essence depicted by Jesus.

Plants are also included, as vines extending around the artwork, at times transforming into snakes, winding around words, or dissipating into complex and intricate designs. Elongated tongues emerge from mystic mouths and transition into vines, ultimately dissolving into sprays of foliage or other intricate designs. Symbolic of evolution, we see the vast diversity of life forms, interconnected, sharing characteristics, but still vastly different, ever-changing, emerging, re-emerging, disappearing, then re-forming.

In its portrayal of “The Word”, The Book of Kells seems to invoke us to recognize the uniqueness and the preciousness of life, its rarity, and the concerted need for cooperation and care for its preservation. But such notions are certainly far beyond this little informative guide of Meehan’s.

Wine

We also see pictures of men sharing wine and possibly experiencing the after-effects from the wine. The sharing of “The Word” is symbolized by the sharing of the wine, as Christ turned water into wine, for sharing with those gathered; and ultimately water into blood, unselfishly sacrificed in absolute refusal to contort “The Word” merely for self-preservation.

But the “after-effects” of wine can turn diabolical when over-indulged. As with “The Word”, taken in measured amounts, it can facilitate a departure from physicality into the spiritual realm. However, indulgence that brings bliss in a controlled manner, turns into death in rash over-consumption, as evidenced by one passing out and becoming comatose.

Similarly, “The Word” brings bliss in its simplest and purest form; but becomes abused in overbearing fundamentalism, until it no longer brings the bliss of love, but rather a sterile, bland, monastic, contorted, and dogmatic existence that is void of love. Similarly, physical love is blissful until it is overcome with jealousy, lust, and power. Again and again, in all things, we see the call for volitional awareness, as opposed to crazed, animal-like, indulgence. The purpose of our lives is inherent to this transition out of animality.

A Time Capsule?

For over a thousand years, The Book of Kells has remained an enigma, something to be wondered about but never fully understood. One remarkable aspect is that it contains blank spaces and scholars have proven that it was never fully finished . In fact, in the 11th and 12th centuries, it was used to record details of property transactions. In the 15th century, a poem was added that complained bitterly about taxation of church land. In the 17th century, historical notes were added by the rector of the parish at Kells and it was signed by the Treasurer of Ireland. It was rebound in the 19th century and librarians have added annotations. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert sought to sign it in 1849. The author of the first modern account of the book initialed it in 1853.

Who are we to suddenly terminate work on and additions to The Book of Kells? Conversely, shouldn’t we be adding to it? In a certain way, historical preservation is a dead end; an unsuccessful attempt to rebuke the onslaught of time and repudiate modernity. The fact is that we are not “stuck” within the ornamentations of the past, but rather fertilized by them in order to proceed anew.

When I view The Book of Kells next year, it will not be from the perspective of subservience to the past; but rather, it will be to receive the sort of inchoate impetus available to us all by learning from history instead of copying it.

-End-

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extended illustrated essay about The Book of Kells. I'm glad to have the text because it does explain a lot, but the real star of the show is, of course, the illustrations from The Book of Kells; both full pages and zoomed in details. I will be returning to certain images from this over and over.

[Garry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book helpful but am giving it only 4 stars out of five. I think it could have been better organized and also that it presumed a certain knowledge about Irish Christian history, that I as a general reader lack. The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript created by monks in the 8th century and a classic of what is called insular (island) art in the medieval period. While it is more or less about the four gospels, it treasured as a great work of art. You need to look at the images, rather than a book review and see if you want to learn more about it.

[Mehmet Dönmez · Rating 4 out of 5]

A geniune book about very special Bible written by the Celtic monks a millenium ago. Astonished by the multilayer structure of the illuminations and the symbolism of the christianity. A slight disappointment could be publication quality - I was expecting better bindings/color quality and think this excellent piece require more sizeful book.

[Bee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative, easy enough to understand the academic language but not a reader-friendly experience. This book relies heavily on describing specific panels in the Book of Kells but the pictures are not on the pages with their descriptions. It was almost impossible to find the images referred to and it was extra confusing that there were images on every page-just not the ones illustrating the information. I did figure it out and there were some really cool things to learn about the Book of Kells. Mostly, this book established that a lot about the creation of the Book of Kells remains a mystery.

[ClareT · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Book of Kells rightly has a degree of fame as far as Manuscripts go. And, the author is obviously extremely knowledgeable about the Book. Howeve, together they made a fairly boring and short book.

I would have liked more information about the materials and techniques and less about the associations of peacocks and fish with Christ, most of which seemed to my mind to be fairly tenuous. Not forgetting the obsession with grapes and chalices (or circles and cups as they appeared to me).

Even the pictures chosen were up uninspiring. Altogether a pretty disappointing read.

[Ann Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was highly informative in a relatively short format--only 95 pages with multiple photos of pages, script and artwork from the Book of Kells. Among other things, the book provided historical background, descriptions of detail on highlighted pages and illustrations, explanations of the animal figures that appear throughout the manuscript and what they represent, and a brief explanation of materials used. There was also a short--but very interesting--section on the scribes themselves. The book provided a nice level of detail along with wonderful photographs of the manuscript itself.

[Ann Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pros: Absolutely gorgeous color plates (images) for a paperback. Enjoyed both the full size & detail shots.

Cons: I found this unnecessary difficult - the terms/language used. Granted a technical subject but would be better geared to a more broad reach. Oddly enjoyed the text stuck at the end the most, about the scribes & artists.

All this said, still 4 stars & recommended. Will be a regular on my coffee table.

[Patrick Neylan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detailed and scholarly study of this amazing book. Beautifully illustrated but with text that's difficult for someone who isn't a scholar of medieval literature - which fortunately I am, but my daughter found it hard going. She suggested just looking at the pictures and reading the first and last chapters.

[Justin Wiggins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating short book about the cultural and historical context of how The Book of Kells came to be. What a beautiful work of art it is!
Reading through the book brought back a very rich memory of seeing the beautiful ancient illuminated manuscript at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. That experience gave me great inspiration for my next book Celtic Dawn being published this Summer!

[Yves · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a long time, it was believed that the blue in the book of Kells was made from lapus lazuli, a precious mineral from Afghanistan. It turns out that woad was used instead, a plant from the Brassicaceae family.
As long as I remember, I will not look at cabbage or radishes in the same way again.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and the pictures of the art are just fantastic. You see way more of the Book of Kells from reading this book than going to Trinity College in Dublin, where they only have a few pages out at a time.

[Marlise · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an amazing historical piece of art!
This guidebook is more of an academic pamphlet with museum-like descriptions but it’s interesting to see some of the folios up close. I hope to actually see the real thing at Trinity College soon.

[BookOtheDay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice color photographs which is the most important thing! Unfortunately the text frequently seems like either it is a translation to English or taken directly from academic/expert texts or both. It can be difficult to understand but when you can, it's very interesting and informative.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork is overwhelming but it is important to look closely at the wonderful composition, the brilliant colors, the intricacies and delicacy of the work as if guided by an angel.

[Susie Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Book of the Krells dating from 800 is a brilliantly decorated manuscript of the four Gospels. Awesome to see and experience the history of an early manuscript of the Bible!

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ll be on the look out for other editions of an historian’s explanation of the book of Kells. This one was rather disappointing.

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely selection of pictures. I loved the history of Kells. It gives the reader a good introduction to the Kells book.

[Amanda]

Not enough illustrations

[Nikki Keefe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super informative!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great overview of the book. It left me wanting to know more. Some of the folios he referenced weren't included in the photos so it was difficult to understand exactly what he was referencing.

[Ross Lampert · Rating 1 out of 5]

For someone interested in an academic analysis of 8th Century Irish religious art, this is probably an excellent book. For anyone else, including me, not so much.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful.