Book of Kells, Dublin

This is one of the biggest attractions in Dublin. A “must see”, if ever there was one. That’s why I missed it on my first 3 visits.

No, but seriously. The first 2 trips were on business.

We got there about 9.30am, just after it opened, and got in almost immediately. By the time we left, I’d guess the queue was 30 minutes long. Go early!

The place is a typical example of turning a small but significant relic into a very big thing, so tourists can be charged a big price. It’s a lovely thing, but for €9 I’m not so sure.

The Long Room upstairs is marvelous, however. An old wood paneled university medical library stuffed full of ancient tomes. Atmospheric. A wonderful smell. Loved it. Reminded me so much of the King’s College Library at Aberdeen University - my alma mater.

In fact, for some reason the whole Trinity College campus reminds me a lot of King’s College. Probably the squares, the lawns, the mixture of ancient and modern.

On our tour we saw the "Book of Kells" and the massive Trinity "Old library". The viewing of the "Kells" was inspirational. This 800-year old work of art is indicative of the struggle for the continuance of our Christian faith. It had been hidden and rescued and kept in an almost perfect condition. The ink that was used in the magnificent volume had been imported from around the world. Many men gave their labor of love to tell the story of Christ

After our tourist stop at the bookstore we snooped around the campus taking pictures waiting to receive our Phil Society card.

Really loved the museum shop there, they have lovely things.

In the heart of Dublin, in the Old Library of the time-honoured Trinity College, there lies a treasure of Celtic inheritance. More than 1.000 years ago, as people assume, the book of Kells (which is a copy of the bible) was written by the monks of the Scottish isle of Iona and later brought to the monastary of Kells in Co. Meath. It’s something like a miracle that it could be saved from harm through centuries of forays, upheaval and conflict.

Every day, one of the 340 pages of the original book is turned and shown to the visitors. The well preserved colours, the rich decoration and ornaments are a pleasure for the eye. There’s also an exhibition with further information on the history of the book of Kells.

The long room of the old library, a “hall of wisdom” with its extended lines of bookshelves and the philosopher’s busts, is worth a visit, too. A paradise for book lovers!

The Book of kells and the illuminated books that are held in the library of Trinity College are fantastic.

It's a little dear to get in mind you and there is the feeling that they want to keep you moving. If you can latch onto an organised tour the guyides have some good stories about the book and the history of celtish writing.

The renowned 'illuminated' manuscript created by monks around AD 800 is one of the oldest books in the world. It contains the four gospels, preceded by prefaces, summaries, and canon tables or concordances of gospel passages. It is written on vellum and contains a Latin text of the Gospels in insular majuscule script accompanied by magnificent and intricate whole pages of decoration with smaller painted decorations appearing throughout the text. The precise detail and vivid colors become clear only when you see the actual manuscript.

This is an old illuminated copy of some gospels, done by Irish monks about 1500 years ago or so. Obviously they can only show a few pages at a time, so there's also a really good exhibit showing how books were made then, how the monks worked with the quills and the various materials for illustrating, etc.