Proc Soc Antiq Scot, 128 (1998), 537-549 Booe th Deef f ko o t rar e Th Jane Geddes* ABSTRACT This paper explores the iconography and style of the illuminations in the 10th-century Book of Deer (Cambridge Univ li 6.32).Lib Although informal generaland appearance bookthe conformsa to group of Irish pocket gospels, possibleis it that book producedthe was Scotland,in with Deer Abbey being mostthe likely sworda location. Anglo-Saxonf4v of On Vikingor type depicted.is The implications of this are examined in terms of surviving artefacts and other manuscript depictions. INTRODUCTION The art of the Book of Deer (Cambridge Univ Lib li 6.32) has received very little critical study until recently. Apart from those which appeared in Stuart's Spalding Club monograph of 1869 (Stuart 1869), reproductions have not featured widely in books about the glory of Insular art (Alexander 1978, 87). Werckmeister (1963) discussed some details of the style but the main publication on the art of the Book of Deer is by Kathleen Hughes (1980), followed by Isobel Henderson's short critique (1986). This short contribution doe t attempsno fula t l analysie th f so book but examines some of the iconographic and stylistic issues raised by Hughes and Henderson, in particular with regard to the origin of the manuscript. The book, begun in the 10th century, contains the four gospels of which only John is complete. Added shortly afterward creede visitatioe th officth n a sice r d A .s th si fo ke an f no Latin charter of King David 1(1124-53) to the clerics of Deer Abbey, Buchan, follows the life of St Drosta foundee recordd th abbey' e an th n— f r— so s land holdings lattee th , r both written i Scottish Gaelic between 110 115d 0an 0 (Stuart 1869). THE FIGURATIVE IMAGES begin) 86 boo e S s , Th witk11y b (150 mm hsmal a m 3m l gatherin f originallgo y four foliosf o , which the last leaf is missing. The first recto is blank allowing a page of the four evangelists to face Liber Generationis, genealogthe Chrisbeginninyof the at t Matthew'gof s gospel firsThe .t written bordea pag s illuminated eha an r d initial quire Th . e ends wit hblana k shee thed e an tnth missing folio secone Th . d gathering begin witsn smalwito hma figurswore a tw ha th l d f eo dan figures above him. The text, with a border and illuminated initial is the start of Matthew proper, Christi autem. Matthew's gospel is deliberately incomplete, occupying only one gathering. Mark begins on the third gathering, with the seated evangelist facing the start of the gospel, with border illuminated an d initial. Luke begins wit nexe hth t quire seatea , d figure facin texe gth t with border * Departmen Historf o t Artf yo , King's College Aberdeend Ol , , Aberdeen AB2G 43U | SOCIET 8 53 ANTIQUARIEF YO SCOTLANDF SO , 1998 initiald an . Luk incompletes ei . John onle ,th y complete gospel, begins with another seated figure, surrounde smallex si y db r texe figuresth t d startan , s with borde initiald ran . Throughout John's gospel there are various small marginalia, sketches or doodles. The text of John's gospel ends half-way down the page and the lower part is filled with two seated figures. Opposite this is a page of the Credo, followed by two end pieces, four figures around a cross and lastly a basically ornamental page with four small figures. t leasa , outlinen i t So e illuminationth , s follo wlogicaa l pattern, with apparently four evangelist beginninge th t sa singla , e evangelis stare th eacf o t a th gospel, greater emphasis paid complete th o t e tex Johnf to , wit finaha l picture presumably illustratin lass git t chapte Christ'r— s commissio testimone Peteth o n t d ran Johf y o Evangelis e nth thed an n finallt— evangeliste yth s again, followed by a pattern page. If this basic outlin least a artist' e s tth ewa s intention closea , riconograph e looth t ka y shows tha tooe h t kcreativa e approac modelss hi o ht . Hughes (1980 conclude) 37 , s tha artise d th t di t t havno completeea d manuscript availabl havy copema o e t t useybu dselectioa designf no s from a sketch book. Henderson (1986, 278) concludes that the Book of Deer is 'evidently modelled on full-scala e gospel boo somf ko e sophistication'. issu e Thith es sshalI i l greateloon i t ka r detailt .I appears that this quits artisti o e fluen,wh when t witpe comet ns i hhi calligrapho st animald yan s in the margin, draws only human-type figures for all his illuminations. He clearly finds the Insular conventions of human anatomy and drapery a puzzle and sticks to his simple, sometimes awkward designs for every illumination. Significantly he omits any representation of the evangelist symbols. He also omits the common preliminary of the canon tables, an area where evangelist symbols are prominently displayed (O'Loughlin in Forsyth, forthcoming). brieA f surve Alexandef yo r (1978) suggests thamucs i t ti h more normal al havet o lt no f i , four tetramorphs, the leasnat t some combinatio gospels starthemthe nof the Deeof t at ,On . r f Iv (illus 1) ther hierarcha s e i figure o tw f yso carrying book satcheln si s around their neckd san two minor figures above. Figures carrying books in satchels are found on the Bressay and Elgin Cathedral stones (Hughes 1980, 28) and on the Cross of the Scriptures, Clonmacnoise (Henry 1967, pi 92). These objects recur throughout the book. If they are not satchels, they could represent house shrines tucked under the carrier's chin. On folios 16v, 29v, 41v and 84v the fish scale could be interpreted as a triangular tegulated roof. Hughes (1980, 28) sees an important precedent in the Pictish stone from Elgin which she describe s 'fousa r evangelists' closen O . r examinatio Elgie nth n figures are, more significantly, onl evangelistso ytw , Matthe Johd wan n with symbols, witwingedo htw , nimbed angels carrying books above (illus 2). The Deer figures, with their clear hierarchy, cannot literally depict the four equal evangelists even if that was the intention. Like Elgin, there are two evangelists below, indicate theiy db r books eithed wingleso an , tw r s angels man-symbolso abovtw r eo , Matthew twice over. However, it should be noted that the same four characters appear around a cross and circle on the last page of the book, f86 (illus 8). It will be argued below that these represent four evangelists even if they look different. The next illumination is f4v, facing the start of Matthew's Christi autem. It is discussed at the end of the article since its sources are quite different from the figures on folios Iv, 16v, 29v, 41v, 84v and 86r. These carry around their necks either books in satchels or little house shrines as mentioned above uppee Th . r bodie like sar squasheea d vesica; they hav loopo etw s over their knees, a square skirt and semicircular feet projecting from a flat hem (illus 3). This figure style descends froe depictiomth f Mattheo n e Echternacth n wi h Gospels (Paris, Bibliotheque National latS e.M 938 Booe 918v)f th Dimmf a ko vi , Mart aS k (Dublin, Trinity Colleg, 59 S eM p30) (illus 4). Werckmeister (1963, 175-81) derives this pattern ultimately from early Coptic GEDDES: THE ART OF THE BOOK OF DEER | 541 pose. If this is so, he is a highly compressed image, encompassing two different figures. Henderson (1986, 278) interprets him as Zacharias praying, relating to Luke 1, but with his folded arms and satchel he is obviously also the evangelist. In Insular art, figures with horizontal arms extending beyond the frame often depict Christ on the cross, but probably not in this instance (see below, f85v)Lichfiele th n I . d Gospels, Luke (illu carrie) s13 s Aaron's buddin symboa s a d Jewisf glo ro h priesthood which also relate Zachariao st priese sth t (Henderson 1987,124) anothes i t .I r example of two images compressed into one. e stare figur th f Joh o Th t n f41a eo n s lik i v e Mark, wit a hsatche s i e l H (illu . 6) s accompanie armlesx si y db s little figures f whic, o onlo hytw hav emoutha maro T .greas khi t importance, ther crosa s ei s below him. Hughes (1980 ) acceptJohns a 33 t ,Henderso m bu , shi n (1986, 278), probably correctly, sees a more complex image behind this. She identifies the figure of Christ surrounde angely Booe db th Kellf n ko si s (Dublin, Trinity Colleg A.I.S eM 6 f32n vi Henderson 1987,157) as the model, based on the Apocalypse text, Revelation 5. Christ holds the sealed book, surrounde angelsy db . Bot Kelle Deehd th san r Chris distinguishee ar t d froe mth evangelists by the small cross. This image, prefacing the most important book of the gospel, thus replace evangelise sth t with Christ himself, reveale gloryn di . John appears more humble th t ya end of his gospel, beside Peter on f84v, illustrating the words of the adjacent last chapter. Unusually, Deer has two endpapers. F85v (illus 7) shows four despondent people around a cross uppee havo Th .