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While
hundreds (if not thousands) of illuminated manuscripts remain in
existence, and still more individual pages have been saved from
once-extant manuscripts, there are two complete manuscripts that stand
out for their history, beauty, and intricately inspired workmanship: the
Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells.
What you’ll notice
first are the first letters of the “chapters,” made elaborate with the
interlacing and spiral patterns that were strongly influenced by
Anglo-Saxon jewelry and enamel work.
Few people could read
during Europe’s so-called Dark Ages (500–1000 AD roughly) so the work of
the monks was vital in passing down the Gospel of Jesus Christ and
preserving it in two wonderful works of art that providentially survived
the devastation wrought by Viking raids.
The Lindisfarne GospelsThis
manuscript was the product of a monastery founded by Saint Cuthbert in
the mid-seventh century. Lindisfarne is located off the coast of
Northern England and still is known as the Holy Island. Unlike most
illuminated manuscripts, which were typically created by a group of
artists and scribes, the entire Lindisfarne Gospels is the work of one
man, Eadfrith, Bishop of Lindisfarne between 698 and 721. What makes
these Gospels unique is the combination of styles used, which
incorporates Celtic, Mediterranean and Anglo-Saxon designs. The texts
are believed to have been dedicated to Saint Cuthbert, who died in 687
and who had a shrine dedicated to him at the monastery.
On June
8th, 794, the Vikings raided Lindisfarne in the first and most infamous
of their attacks. Writing some centuries later, Simeon of Durham says
that many monks were killed outright, others driven into hiding or
drowned in the sea, and still others were "taken away in fetters." While
by no means a witness or even contemporary of the raids, Simeon’s
version mirrors descriptions of other forays by Vikings.
The
Lindisfarne Gospels were a foot high and enclosed in a bejeweled cover
that was either lost or looted. But the manuscript itself was saved from
Viking plunder by a group of monks who fled the invading Norsemen....
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