In this period we see a lot of Celtic manuscripts. The 7th to the 9th centuries brought great strides and developments in insular art, that is, art from Island nations (usually with reference to the Celtic nations of Scotland, Ireland, and parts of France). These gospels tell the stories of the life of Christ through the writers Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Rossano Gospels are similarly impressive with its figurative drawings and dark pages. It is one of the oldest surviving copies of the Old Testament. The Codex Argentus (Latin for “silver book”) is renowned for its pages which are dyed a rich purple colour, which would have signified importance and inspired awe due to the expense and rarity of the pigment, and for its gold and silver lettering, an adventure in opulence. The Ostrogothic kingdom, later known as the Kingdom of Italy, rose to power under Theodoric the Great at the beginning of the 6th century.Įxamples of manuscripts from this time include the Codex Argenteus and the Rossano Gospels, pictured below, which are both very striking in their own ways. The earliest surviving examples of illuminated manuscripts date from around the years 400 – 600 and are found in what used to be the Eastern Roman Empire, in what was the Ostrogoth’s kingdom.
DEFINITION OF ILLUMINATED MANUSCRIPTS SKIN
Usually written in Latin, these books were comprised of pages made of vellum, calf skin which had been stretched, dried and prepared for illumination. In the first millennium, gospel books were the most commonly found types of manuscripts.
Only very important works were deemed worthy of copying, and as such, in the religious western society, early illuminated manuscripts tend to be gospel books for display in churches and cathedrals. As such, prior to this date, books had to be written and decorated painstakingly by hand, which was an expensive and time consuming process.
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