Scotland's oldest book: A pocket-sized piece of historical dynamite

Published on Thursday 10 December 2009 21:39

FOR decades it has lain in the vaults of a Scottish university library, seen by only a handful of scholars.

• The 11th-century collection of psalms on display in Edinburgh was likely produced by monks on Iona and is described as 'a riot of colour'.

But from today Scotland's oldest book – a handwritten illuminated collection of psalms – goes on display to the public for the first time in more than 40 years.

The 11th-century pocket psalter was painstakingly written out by hand, most likely by monks on the island of Iona, for the private devotions of a wealthy aristocrat.

Described as Scotland's version of the celebrated Book of Kells in Dublin, the priceless manuscript has illuminations in vivid green, red, purple and gold, and the script – the psalms in Latin – is still bold and clear.

The University of Edinburgh has held the book in its collection since the early 17th century, hidden away apart from a brief public outing in 1967 when it was part of an exhibition at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh.

But now it will form the centrepiece of an exhibition of literary gems which opens today in the university library's refurbished Exhibition Room on the ground floor of the Basil Spence-designed building in George Square.

Although the original binding of the psalter has been lost, the script is bold and clear, and it gives a text of the psalms in Latin that can still be read.

Edinburgh University's rare book librarian Joseph Marshall said: "It is a riot of colour. You would think someone had gone over it with a felt-tip pen."

Andrew Grout, in charge of special collections at the university, said it is not known for sure who made or previously owned the book. "We don't know who commissioned it, but it would have been someone very important.

"It could have been a royal, possibly Queen Margaret."

He said the text was so rare, it was impossible to say how much it was worth. "It is always difficult to value something which is unique and things like this come up at auction very rarely," he said.

The exhibition also includes a copy of Romeo and Juliet, printed in Shakespeare's lifetime, and the first book to be printed in Gaelic.

Specially designed display cabinets with controlled environments have been purchased in Italy to exhibit the precious books.

And a security system, which includes a lock-down procedure if there is a breach, has been installed to protect the priceless collection.

Sinead Feltoe, regional director for Edinburgh at VisitScotland, said: "This is great news for Edinburgh, a city steeped in literary heritage. The city is already a cultural hotspot and a Unesco City of Literature, and I'm sure this exhibition will be a real pull for even more visitors."

The exhibition, Masterpieces 1, runs from today to 14 March from 10am to 5pm on Monday-Saturday and 12-5pm on Sundays.

THE SPINE OF A GREAT COLLECTION

AMONG the books on show at the exhibition is a 1567 translation of John Knox's Book of Common Order, the only copy in Scotland of what is the first book printed in any of the Gaelic languages.

Scotland's first substantial printed book, the Aberdeen Breviary, commissioned by William Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen, to give Scotland its own distinctive liturgy, and printed in 1509-10, is also part of the exhibition.

A very rare copy of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, published during the dramatist's lifetime, can also be seen, along with a beautifully illuminated manuscript of the works of the Roman poet Virgil, made in Paris in the first half of the 15th century.