BOOK OF KELLS（9780500238943）

"TheBookofKells"isamasterpieceofmedievalartabrilliantlydecoratedversionofthefourGospelswithfull-pagedepictionsofChrist,theVirginandtheEvangelistsaswellasawealthofsmallerdecorativepainting.Thisnewbook,bytheKeeperofManuscriptsatTrinityCollegeLibrary,Dublin,representsonagenerousscalethegloriesofthe"BookofKells"fortodaysreaders,revealingtheastoundingdetailandrichnessofoneofthegreatesttreasuresofmedievalart.Itsillustrationsfeature59full-sizereproductionsofcompletepagesofthemanuscript,and,inaddition,enlargeddetailsthatallowonetorelishtheintricacyofelementsbarelyvisibletothenakedeye.Weexplore"TheBookofKells"throughitshistoricalbackground;adisplayoftheelementsofthebook,actualsize;thespectacularopeningsofthetextsthatprecedetheGospels;astudyofearlierandcomparablemanuscripts;detailedexaminationofsymbolsandthemes,withspecialenlargeddetails;alookatthescribesandartistswhoworkedonthemanuscript;andaconsiderationoftechnicalaspects,illuminatedbyrecentscientificresearch.