The Lindisfarne Gospels

(This public domain image is a page from one of the oldest illuminated manuscript books in the world. It dates back to 700 c.e.)

 

 

 

   

The Lindisfarne Gospels

I had a dream about Matthew last night so this manuscript page was the first thing I thought about this morning when I arose. In the dream I was sitting at a desk re-writing a manuscript and Matthew walked up and commented on this age-old practice of recording manuscripts.

We owe a lot to these early monasteries because this was the only means for recording the early classics and religious texts. After the fall of western Rome, droves and droves of people enrolled in the monasteries seeking an education. Life must have been rough at this time and many people willingly accepted celibacy and joined the monasteries in hopes of gaining a less stressful life. Knowledge was sacred, even more so at this time because most ancient writings had been destroyed in fires or horded off by vandals as each Roman city fell to outsiders. Each manuscript page was created by hand by a scribes (the writers) and illuminators (the artists) using the finest inks, dyes and vellum in all the land. Vellum is the highest grade of parchment. Parchment is made from cow's hide and vellum is made from calf's hide. They take the calf's skin and stretch it around a frame to scrape off all the excess fur and blood. As the skin dries it contracts into a nice surface that holds the paint very well. The paints are all hand made by grinding down pigments and mixing this with an egg binder and water. The cobalt blue you are seeing in this manuscript was one of the most expensive paints in the world. It's made from grinding down a stone called Lapis Lazuli which comes from the Middle East so this color was imported. The illuminator would also apply gold leaf to the pages. This gave the painting a shimmer when the light hit the page. The actual page shining back at the viewer is where we get the term 'illuminated manuscript' because the page looked as if it was lit up when the light hitting the metal. (It's also a great metaphor for knowledge 'illuminating the mind.') These books were so expensive the cost to produce one was equivalent to the same price for a farm or a vineyard so only the very rich (royalty) or the very holy (monasteries) could afford to own a manuscript.

I could spend more time talking about the process of manuscripts but I think it is more important to talk about the image on this particular page of the Lindisfarne Gospels. I recall a class that I was teaching last year that really enjoyed this image. I had explained to them that I love medieval manuscripts because of the primitive way the images were painted. These poor medieval monks and nuns did not have the training and art skills that the people in ancient Rome had nor did they have the skills the early Byzantine artist had. There were no great art schools in this region. The monasteries and early medieval castles were the only art departments in the territory. Western monasteries had to learn by copying older manuscripts from early roman Christianity so these images are a little crude. In fact, this manuscript is 'simpler' than the earliest Roman manuscript that was created at the end of the Roman empire.

Notice the 'floating' guy with no feet behind the curtain. We really have no idea who this guy is. The original concept has been lost in time. Most people believe its Moses or God inspiring Matthew to write the manuscript page. Notice how the book is pointed towards us so we can see the page? This was the standard formula at this time. Later in history, we do not see the actual page Matthew is composing in the gospel portrayals. Each of the four authors, (and it is still debated if they really wrote these books) is portrayed by a different symbol. Matthew is the only one shown as a man and the old beard he is wearing represents the mortal Christ.

Hopefully, I've emphasized how important these early manuscript pages are to us now. I could write a lot more about these first books in history but I think I'll save that for another time and another dream. Thanks for the inspiration, Matthew!