[HN Gopher] Book of Kells (2018)
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       Book of Kells (2018)
        
       Author : YeGoblynQueenne
       Score  : 69 points
       Date   : 2024-01-04 10:32 UTC (2 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.worldhistory.org)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.worldhistory.org)
        
       | anotherhue wrote:
       | View it online
       | https://digitalcollections.tcd.ie/concern/works/hm50tr726?lo...
       | 
       | The queues to see it in Dublin can be long.
        
         | jan_Inkepa wrote:
         | I don't think I've seen a very high-res/non-blurry digital
         | version of it online - bit of a shame, given how much is going
         | on on some of the pages.
        
         | vdddv wrote:
         | No queues anymore, You need to choose a time when you book your
         | ticket and there is a set number of tickets for each time slot.
        
           | selimthegrim wrote:
           | Is this for the 'experience'?
           | 
           | https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/jan/04/book-
           | of...
        
             | jahnu wrote:
             | No that's something else.
        
               | shawa_a_a wrote:
               | For anyone else interested, and to clarify, "the Book of
               | Kells experience" is to stand in for the exhibit in the
               | Old Library while it's closed for renovations until 2025
               | [1].
               | 
               | Rather than and Old Library, it's a huge red prefab
               | building in New Square. Might not be quite as impressive
               | as the original tour.
               | 
               | 1: https://www.tcd.ie/old-library-campaign/faq/
        
         | NoZebra120vClip wrote:
         | If you've ever got the occasion to visit Phoenix, AZ, there is
         | a permanent exhibition which includes a full-colour facsimile,
         | and entry is always free of charge.
         | 
         | https://www.azirish.org/events-and-programs/exhibitions/book...
        
       | danielvaughn wrote:
       | I've never seen The Book of Kells in person, but I have seen The
       | Belles Heures, and it's imprinted in my mind as one of the most
       | incredible works of art I've ever seen.
       | 
       | https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/470306
       | 
       | If you're ever in NYC, do yourself a favor and make your way up
       | to The Cloisters - it's housed there. Very cool museum even aside
       | from this.
        
       | dmazin wrote:
       | Highly recommend the animated movie Secret of the Kells.
        
         | plemer wrote:
         | Seconded - very distinctive animation, loved the music.
        
         | acdha wrote:
         | nth-ing this. Absolutely beautiful in its own right and a great
         | introduction to the book.
        
           | NoZebra120vClip wrote:
           | Honestly, I don't know the exact intent of the producers
           | here, but that film seemed more like an introduction and
           | primer for Druidic Paganism than a historical examination of
           | monastic scribal practices in the 9th century.
        
             | galleywest200 wrote:
             | Well in their defense a primer for fantastical stories
             | makes for a more interesting animated movie than a
             | historical examination of scribal practices.
        
             | acdha wrote:
             | I think the intention was both to share a lot of Irish
             | folklore and the tumultuous times where that book was made
             | in the era before Ireland became as Catholic as most of us
             | were used to thinking of it as. The idea that something
             | beautiful could come out of the violent Viking era is a
             | pretty powerful concept for a filmmaker, and the art style
             | shows that the makers weren't rejecting their Celtic
             | heritage.
        
             | dragontamer wrote:
             | You're telling me that a 9th century young monk didn't
             | defeat the pegan god Crom Cruach, steal his eye and use it
             | to write the Book of Kells?
             | 
             | -----
             | 
             | As a less sarcastic response: the movie is about the
             | atmosphere / setting of dark-age Ireland, drawn in the
             | style demonstrated by the Book of Kells (a book from those
             | centuries).
             | 
             | One of the wonders of the book is that whoever wrote it
             | seems to have had a magnifying glass, as many designs are
             | enlarged objects. But magnifying glasses were not yet
             | invented. Maybe they had a different technique involving
             | water bubbles or something in the 9th century to see the
             | incredibly intricate drawings of that book. Or maybe they
             | independently discovered magnifying glasses and kept it
             | secret somehow. Who knows?
             | 
             | But going ham by saying "Oh, they stole the eye of the
             | pegan god and used that to help write the book" is quite
             | epic and excellent storytelling. Its obviously ahistorical
             | but a cool story nonetheless.
             | 
             | And its one cool way of acknowledging one cool mystery of
             | that book.
        
               | binary132 wrote:
               | Some truths are best told as parables, sometimes
               | fantastical ones.
        
             | binary132 wrote:
             | European Christianity in many ways was integrated with the
             | local mythologies and mysticisms of the peoples who took it
             | up. For example, the magic in infinite knotwork became
             | Christian prayer in the new framework. It's not so far-
             | fetched to see the illumination of the Book of Kells as
             | being in direct continuity with the pagan heritage, and the
             | message of the film seemed to me to be the exposition of
             | that relationship, and of how that relationship was used in
             | evangelization.
             | 
             | The Vikings themselves were eventually pacified by the same
             | evangelization, and social integration into the new Europe.
        
         | riffraff wrote:
         | I loved it, "Song of the sea" by the same director/author is
         | also quite good but not as much IMVHO.
        
           | rschiavone wrote:
           | Check out Wolfwalkers too, is the third movie of the Irish
           | Folklore Trilogy made by Tomm Moore after Song of the Sea
        
             | riffraff wrote:
             | Noted!
        
             | hinkley wrote:
             | The Breadwinner was a rough watch. Not Grave of the
             | Fireflies level, but dealing with very heavy subject
             | matters. Like an animated Kiterunner.
        
           | hinkley wrote:
           | Song of the Sea is even prettier.
           | 
           | Find the friend with the 4K HDR TV and invite yourself over
           | to watch it.
           | 
           | They should rerelease that one in theaters.
        
         | binary132 wrote:
         | My family loves this movie. I came here to leave this comment
         | :)
        
       | dotsam wrote:
       | I had a Book of Kells colouring book when I was a child, I really
       | loved it. Such beautiful designs.
        
       | amacbride wrote:
       | It's really gorgeous in person, and the Trinity Library itself is
       | an absolute must-see if you're in Dublin and love books.
        
         | intrasight wrote:
         | My daughter has a reproduction, and I've enjoyed many hours of
         | looking at the illustrations. My girlfriend and her best friend
         | went to see it at Trinity last year. I'm jealous.
        
         | welcome_dragon wrote:
         | The library was the inspiration for the Jedi library in Star
         | Wars movies. Inspiration as in basically a remake of the
         | library.
         | 
         | It's absolutely breathtaking in person
        
         | thinkingtoilet wrote:
         | I think the library is far more impressive than the book
         | itself. It felt sacred.
        
       | selimthegrim wrote:
       | The etymology of miniature was news to me - South Asian artists
       | have been decrying the term as colonial as of late and this
       | provides some important context
        
         | yetanother12345 wrote:
         | What? Miniature is colonial?
         | 
         | Please let me introduce you to the concept "Persian Miniature",
         | it even has a Wikipedia page:
         | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_miniature
         | 
         | There is also the equally (if not more) well-known concept of
         | "Chinese Miniature Painting". Example:
         | https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/36047
         | 
         | Both of these traditions are very established in Art History
         | and any hypothetical tie to Western colonialism is, well, fully
         | absent. That said, do a search using your favorite search
         | engine. Miniature is not exactly a niche concept, so you will
         | find lots and lots of great (small) stuff.
        
           | selimthegrim wrote:
           | You had better tell Shahzia Sikander that.
        
         | thomond wrote:
         | Do you have any more information on this? It sounds just too
         | crazy to be true.
        
           | selimthegrim wrote:
           | It was a note posted at this exhibition -
           | https://www.risd.edu/news/stories/shahzia-sikander-
           | extraordi...
        
       | Archelaos wrote:
       | I once read that the Book of Kells has a feature that can usually
       | not or only under ideal circumstances be observed on a digital
       | reproduction or photo: Some narrow lines of the drawings produce
       | optical illusions when seen from a typical reading distance. It
       | is supposed to be a kind of "virtual" glowing colours between the
       | lines that seem to disappear when you focus on them. -- Can
       | anyone here confirm this?
        
       | AlbertCory wrote:
       | I saw it in Dublin. No special tickets or long waits, IIRC. It's
       | totally worth it, as is Trinity College.
       | 
       | I've also been to Iona! There was a bus trip through Mull (not
       | that exciting) and then a ferry to Iona. There was some cattle
       | land, but otherwise pretty undeveloped.
        
         | arethuza wrote:
         | Iona is pretty much Scotland's open-air equivalent of
         | Westminster Abbey - there are supposed to be 48
         | Dalriadan/Scottish kings buried there, as well as eight
         | Norwegian and four Irish kings.
         | 
         | It also has some of the nicest beaches I have seen anywhere -
         | although relatively few people ever go to them as they are
         | mostly on the far side of the island from the pier and the
         | abbey.
        
           | AlbertCory wrote:
           | You're right, I didn't go. I bet it's windy, though?
        
           | Affric wrote:
           | It's a great island.
        
         | 40four wrote:
         | We were just there in October. There is a ticketing system now
         | with timed entry, so get your tickets in advance. It's
         | reasonable. Like 10 Euro or something. We got there later in
         | the day and it was sold out, but my fiance was able negotiate
         | her way in :) She loved it! The rest of the library looked
         | really cool too.
        
       | shermantanktop wrote:
       | I've seen it in person. At that time (90s) they had it open to
       | one page, and would turn the page every week or so.
       | 
       | Unfortunately when I was there some clueless old codger decided
       | to take a picture with a 35mm camera, leading to a massive flash,
       | after all the signs telling everyone not to. It really brought
       | home how much safer these artifacts are when the idiot public has
       | no access.
        
       | patrickdavey wrote:
       | I went to college in Trinity and the Book of Kells is housed in
       | the old library.
       | 
       | Once you've finished seeing the book, you head upstairs through
       | the Long Room, and that place is just special (they used it as
       | the hall of the jedi)
       | 
       | As a student there you could visit for free. I used to just go up
       | and hang in the library for 10 mins or so a few times a year.
       | Loved it.
       | 
       | https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Trinity_College_D...
        
         | chrisfosterelli wrote:
         | I agree; I visited trinity collage a couple years ago and the
         | book is fascinating from a historical perspective, but seeing
         | it in a case isn't much better than a photo. The library itself
         | is the better attraction.
        
       | thereikiway wrote:
       | I saw the book in 2017, the whole of trinity college library is
       | just gorgeous.
        
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       (page generated 2024-01-06 23:01 UTC)