Искусства и ремесла Средневековья

344 A1·ts and Crafts ш the l\fiddle Ages

tшconscioнsly influenced Ьу this, and the result is а marvellous use of conventional fonn and vivid colours, ,vhile the lшшаn figшe is hardly atteшpted at all, or, ,Yhen introdнced, is so conventionally tгeated, as to Ье only а sign instead of а гepresentation. РrоЬаЫу the earliest represeпtation of а pen in the holder, although of а vегу p1·iшitive patteгn, occurs in а miniature in the Gospels of Мае Dшnam, wheгe St. John is seen writiпg with а pen in one hand and а knife, for shaгpening it, in the other. This pictuгe is t,Yo centшies earlieг than any otheг kпown repгesenta­ tion of the use of the реп, the volшne having been executed in the early part of tЬе eighth centшy. Two of the шost famous Irish books аге tЬе Book of Kells, and the Durham Book. The Book of Kells is now in Tгinity College, DuЫin. It is also known as thc Gospel of St. Columba. St. Columba came, as the Chroв­ icle of Ethelwerd states, in the year 565: '' five years afteг­ waгds Chгist's servant Columba came fгom Scotia (Ire­ land) to Bгitain, to ргеасh the � т ord of God to tl1e Picts." The intгicacy of the inteгlacing decoration is so шinнte that it is impossiЫe to describe it. Each line шау Ье followed to its conclusion, ,,;ith tl1e aid of а strong magnifying glass, but саппоt Ье clea1·ly tгaced with the naked еуе. \Vestwood герогts that, with а microscope, he counted in опе square incЬ of the page, one hundгed and fifty-eight interlacements of bands, each being of white, Ьordered 011 either side with а Ыасk line. In this