Studies on the Book of Deer : Katherine Forsyth

Studies on the Book of Deer

Edited by Katherine Forsyth

Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2008. First Edition. Hardback book in dust jacket. pp. xvii+481 incl. 38 figs+22 colour plates. 

This collection of studies investigates all aspects of a rare, early Scottish manuscript, the Book of Deer, which is distinguished by containing some of Scotland's earliest property records for the monastery of Deer, Aberdeenshire. The manuscript is now held in Cambridge University Library (MS Ii.6.32) and is readily accessible to view online at www.lib.cam.ac.uk. Admittedly it is one of the more unprepossessing insular manuscripts, having stylized illuminations and partial texts of the first three synoptic gospels, a complete gospel of John, an Office for the Visitation of the Sick, Apostles Creed, and the property records. Nevertheless, this small tenth-century 'pocket gospel' remains one of the most important historical documents for medieval Scotland. This statement is proven in the fifteen articles in this collection, covering the palaeographical, linguistic, liturgical, and art historical aspects of the manuscript itself, as well as the history of Deer and a reading of its toponymic landscape. Each aspect of the Book of Deer and its historical and cultural environs is thoroughly examined by leading experts in a variety of disciplines.

CONDITION
A fine copy throughout. Dust jacket very good with no damage. Pages clean throughout. No names or writing. A fine copy.

(H/H)