The Book of Kells

One question might be whether or not the art is made sacred by the artist or by the people who view the art. Perhaps simply by intending to convey a sacred message, an artist can create sacred art. In contrast, perhaps the artist's intentions are irrelevant, and it is simply the peoples' reaction (spiritual or otherwise) that decides if a piece of work is considered sacred. A third possibility is that art is created for a saint, and later becomes sacred as it's style and subject is used over and over again in tradition. Throughout this paper I will consider both artist intent and viewers reaction to determine if the Book of Kells is in fact sacred.

The Book of Kells is said to be among the most recognized art in the world along with the David and the Mona Lisa . The book itself is currently on display at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. Although it has only been on display since the turn of the century it has long been an important piece of Irish culture. The book was created in Ireland around 1200 years ago and has seldom been outsides it's shores. Throughout the middle ages, the book was revered at Kells as a relic of Saint Columba. In the middle of the 17th century the book was moved to Dublin to keep it secure. It is considered a staple of Irish culture, and one of its most renowned works of art.

The Book of Kells was written around 800 AD. It contains copies of the four gospels in the Latin language. More importantly for our discussion, the book is famous for being exquisitely decorated. The book contains elaborate letter work, artistic interpretations of key phrases and ideas, and complex scenes depicting the age-old scenes that are familiar from the Bible and commonly depicted in other sacred art.

We must first consider who created this work and the reason for its creation. The Book of Kells is sometimes called the "Book of Columba." Originally it was thought to have been written in the time of Columba (even by the saint himself) but it is now widely accepted that it was written well after his death, and was written to honor the saint, in the Iona monastery . So we know that the Book of Kells was a product of Irish monks. Although at the time monasteries were one of the few ways a bright young man could be educated, it is reasonable to assume that if the people working on the book resided in the monastery, they were intent followers of the Christian religion.

We must also consider the location of the artwork in question. The artwork was not the focus of the monks work. It is rather an embellishment of the real work, which was creating a copy of important religious texts. In the case of the Book of Kells, this is the Four Gospels, a fragment of Hebrew names, and the Eusebian canons. To Christians, these texts were sacred at the time of the book's creation, and are still considered sacred today. In a time before mass book production, coping of these texts alone was a massive job, the time put into the artwork in the Book of Kells would have made the project significantly longer. It is safe to conclude that when books were so rare and time consuming, images would not be added to a sacred text if they were not meant to add to the reader's religious

So far we have concluded that holy men and followers of the church did the artwork in the Book of Kells. We also know that the artwork is intertwined with sacred texts of their religion. Let us now examine what the art itself depicts.

One type of sacred image discussed in class in Sacred are and secular art: the controversy over the digital Virgin of Guadalupe are images of the virgin mother of Christ. I found it interesting that the oldest existing depiction of this scene, Mary holding the baby Jesus, in a western manuscript was from the Book of Kells. As seen by the reactions of people to different versions of artwork depicting the virgin and child, this is clearly something people find sacred in the sense that it connects them to the divine. The rendition in the Book of Kells is no different.

The art in the Book of Kells also illustrates several other important scenes from the bible. Some of the images shown below are Christ enthroned, a portrait of John, and a portrait of Matthew. We must consider how important these subjects are to Christians. They are in fact not just drawings of men, being iconic in nature as spiritual doorways to the divine, but of the very Son of God and the founders of the religion with whom god had advised. These are at the very heart of the religion that was so important to the book's artists.

It is not just people or scenes that are shown in the pages of the Book of Kells. The book also makes art out of the very words of the texts that it is conveying. This is done in several ways. The first involves key phrases of the text being singled out and embellished to direct more attention to their importance. Since all of the words of a biblical text are considered to be a sacred text, I would conclude that picking out the most important parts of this text would make at least the phrases themselves sacred. When the phrases themselves become the art, it becomes blurry if it is the art that is sacred or only the words.

Another way that the text is embellished is by the first letters of paragraphs or ideas being oversized and graphically illustrated. While this form of writing is indeed beautiful, I do not think that you could call it sacred. By looking at this letter art, if I did not know its origin to be the Book of Kells, I would in no way find it to be a look into the metaphysical.

One of the most recognizable Celtic forms of art is the Celtic knot. Throughout the pages of the Book of Kells, there are elaborate borders and corners. Some of them are created of abstract knots and curls, while many are complex repeating animal forms. This is a rich Irish tradition but is it a form of sacred art? While I don't think of these symbols as being sacred to a Christian, I would argue that some forms of knot work are sacred to pagans and as in religious traditions all over the world these pagan or indigenous symbols were integrated into the new spiritual tradition, such as Christianity, to make it more meaningful or palatable. It would seem contradictory that a more pagan art form would be found in a sacred Christian text. I think however that because the knot work is also a precious local cultural symbol, that it can be used in sacred Christian art work without in any way lowering its religious value.

In the twelfth century, Giraldus Cambrensis referred to the illuminated manuscripts (including the Book of Kells) as the "work of angels." Here again we get back to the idea of iconic sacred art inspired by the divine and connecting one to that divine. I think this really sums up what most people see when they look at the artwork. Besides the fact that it often depicts angels and the holy people of biblical stories, there is something deeper. When looking at the pages, you feel like you are looking at something very special. The images aren't of this world. These are the images we have grown up with in the church, and show us what the divine looks like. They have been passed down and simulated by others for countless generations, making them such a part of tradition we can hardly see them as anything but sacred. We recognize all of them from our traditions, and they manage to be incredibly complex and perfectly simple at the same time. Although everyone reacts to art differently, I think most people could look at these illustrations and without reading a single word understand the magnitude of what they are trying to convey. This suggests that the Book of Kells illustrates perennial philosophy, because it appeals to a universal truth. A viewer need not be Christian to see the divine aspect of the art.

In the book The Last of the Celts, Marcus Tanner describes his experience of visiting the Book of Kells. He describes waiting in long lines behind slow moving ahhing tourists to see a few well-lit pages of the work while listening to taped Celtic music. He complained that it had been reduced to a moneymaking tourist attraction no different than visiting the crown jewels. This hardly sounds like a sacred experience to me. I think that perhaps this is more a reflection on our society today then on the value of the book. Although it may be presented in a profitable, and perhaps unsacred fashion, it does not take away form the important art in the book. In contrast, I think it is largely because people do consider the book to be sacred that they are willing to buy into the presentation of it just to experience seeing it first hand. It is also true that if the book was viewed in a quiet contemplative setting that each viewer might have more of an opportunity to experience the connection to the divine oneness with all being or God, which is the sacred intention of the writers, illustrators and religious tradition from which this glorious work of art, the Book of Kells, manifested.

From the information we have explored in this paper, I would conclude that the Book of Kells as a complete work would definitely be considered a work of sacred art. Although there are specific elements of the work that might not fall into this category, the overwhelming majority of it seems to me to be sanctified. It was created by holy men, placed within a biblical text, and depicts (amongst other things) religious scenes and phrases. In addition to this, it is a prized possession of the Irish culture that is heavily rooted in Christian beliefs. I believe that the intent of the creators was to in fact give the viewer a look into the metaphysical world of the texts, and indeed readers viewed the art in this light.