Durham Cathedral Library, Manuscript A.II.10. is a fragmentary seventh-century Insular Gospel Book, produced in

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

c. 650.Nordenfalk, 28 Only seven leaves of the book survive, bound in three separate volumes in the

Durham Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of t ...

Dean and Chapter Library (MS A. II 10 ff. 2–5, 238-8a; MS C. III. 13, ff. 192–5; and MS C. III. 20, ff 1–2). Although this book is fragmentary, it is the earliest surviving example in the series of lavish Insular Gospel Books which includes the

Book of Durrow The Book of Durrow is an illuminated manuscript dated to c. 700 that consists of text from the four Gospels gospel books, written in an Irish adaption of Vulgate Latin, and illustrated in the Insular script style.Moss (2014), p. 229 Its origin a ...

, the

Lindisfarne Gospels The Lindisfarne Gospels (London, British Library Cotton MS Nero D.IV) is an illuminated manuscript gospel book probably produced around the years 715–720 in the monastery at Lindisfarne, off the coast of Northumberland, which is now in the B ...

, the

Lichfield Gospels The Lichfield Gospels (recently more often referred to as the St Chad Gospels, but also known as the Book of Chad, the Gospels of St Chad, the St Teilo Gospels, the Llandeilo Gospels, and variations on these) is an 8th-century Insular Gospel ...

and the

Book of Kells The Book of Kells ( la, Codex Cenannensis; ga, Leabhar Cheanannais; Dublin, Trinity College Library, MS A. I. 8 sometimes known as the Book of Columba) is an illuminated manuscript Gospel book in Latin, containing the four Gospels of the New ...

. The surviving illuminations are a border to the colophon at the end of the

Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and for ...

and an "INI" monogram at the beginning of the

Gospel of Mark The Gospel of Mark), or simply Mark (which is also its most common form of abbreviation). is the second of the four canonical gospels and of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells of the ministry of Jesus from his baptism by John the Baptist to h ...

. The frame is in the form of three "D" shapes stacked one atop another and which occupy the entire right half of the page. The spaces between the curves of the "D" shapes are filled with triangular knots. The "D" shapes themselves are decorated orange dots superposed on yellow interlace patterns. The pattern of the interlace is different on each of the "D" shapes. This frame represents the first appearance in an Insular manuscript of interlace, a motif which will assume enormous importance in later manuscripts. The frame encloses the ''explicit'' for Matthew, the ''

incipit The incipit () of a text is the first few words of the text, employed as an identifying label. In a musical composition, an incipit is an initial sequence of notes, having the same purpose. The word ''incipit'' comes from Latin and means "it beg ...

'' for Mark, and the text of the '' pater noster'' in Greek, but written in Latin letters. The "INI" monogram is formed by compressing the three letters into a large N which is reminiscent of the initial N found in the Ambrosiana Jerome. The left upright of the monogram is over twice as long as the right. Both uprights are divided into two columns of coloured panels separated by a black and cable. The panels are decorated with dots of contrasting colours. Both ends of the right upright and the top end of the left upright have spiral pattern terminals. The lower end of the left upright and both ends of the knotted cross bar have beast-head terminals. In the first line of text that follows the monogram, the letters are hollow-shafted and each successive letter is smaller than the previous. There are some smaller initials marking verses in Matthew. This manuscript shows the beginning of many techniques and motifs that are used in later manuscripts. The use of decorated text in which the decoration distorts the shape of the letters has been seen before, notably in the

Cathach of St. Columba The Cathach of St. Columba, known as the Cathach (meaning "the Battler"),O'Neill (2014), p. 12 is a late 6th century Insular psalter. It is the oldest surviving manuscript in Ireland, and the second oldest Latin psalter in the world. Its cumdac ...

. But the combination of letters into a monogram is a new motif, one that will be developed extensively in later manuscripts. Similar "INI" monograms will be used at the beginning of the Gospel of Mark in almost every later Insular Gospel Book. The use of alternating colours that almost resemble enamel plaques such as are seen in this manuscript's INI monogram will also become a standard technique in later manuscripts. The successive diminution of letters following an initial had also been seen, again notably in the Cathach, and would also be a standard technique in Insular illumination. Finally the interlace pattern first found here would become an almost defining aspect of Insular illumination.

Notes

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References

*Nordenfalk, Carl. ''Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Book illumination in the British Isles 600–800''. New York: George Braziller, 1977. * Wilson, David M.; ''Anglo-Saxon Art: From The Seventh Century To The Norman Conquest'', Thames and Hudson (US edn. Overlook Press), 1984. 7th-century biblical manuscripts Gospel Books Hiberno-Saxon manuscripts Irish manuscripts Durham Cathedral 7th-century illuminated manuscripts