Oldest Scottish manuscript to go on display in Aberdeen
The Book of Deer, possibly Scotland’s oldest surviving manuscript, is set to return to the north-east of Scotland for the first time in 1,000 years when it goes on loan from Cambridge University Library next year.
The manuscript, which came to the UL in 1715, is a small manuscript containing the text of the gospels in Latin which has been dated to the first half of the tenth century.
It was produced for private use rather than for church services.
It contains the oldest surviving example of written Scots Gaelic in the world within its margins.
At the start of each gospel text is a full-page illustration of a human figure or figures.
The Book of Deer, possibly Scotland’s oldest surviving manuscript, is set to return to the north-east of Scotland for the first time in 1,000 years when it goes on loan from Cambridge University Library next year.
The manuscript, which came to the UL in 1715, is a small manuscript containing the text of the gospels in Latin which has been dated to the first half of the tenth century. It was produced for private use rather than for church services.
It contains the oldest surviving example of written Scots Gaelic in the world within its margins. At the start of each gospel text is a full-page illustration of a human figure or figures.
