The Book of Kells

1914

Central PYP Sul. Hewitson Library, Knox College, Dunedin

London: Studio

The decorations in The Book of Kells often involve traditional Christian iconography. The illuminations here portray the symbols of the Four Evangelists: a man (Matthew), a lion (Mark), an eagle (John), and an ox (Luke), each of the figures is winged. Curiously, in Joyce’s Ulysses, these symbols appear on the citizen’s ‘muchtreasured and intricately embroidered ancient Irish’ handkerchief. In his description, Joyce playfully gives Matthew ‘a bogoak sceptre’ instead of a lance, replaces the (British) lion with ‘a North American puma’ and the ox with ‘a Kerry calf,’ and says that the eagle is from Carrantuohill.