Page 90

CELTIC ORNAMENT.
PLATE LXV.
SPIRAL, DIAGONAL, ZOOMORPHIC, AND LATER ANGLO-SAXON ORNAMENTS.
1. Initial Letter, from the Gospels of Lindisfarne. End of
7th century. British Museum. (Magnified.)
2. Ornament of angulated Lines, from the Gregorian Gospels.
British Museum. (Magnified.)
3. Interlaced Animals, from the Book of Kells, in the
Library of Trinity College, Dublin. (Magnified.)
4. Diagonal Pattern. Gospels of Mac Durnan, in the Library
of Lambeth Palace. 9th century. (Magnified.)
5 and 12. Spiral Patterns, from the Gospels of Lindisfarne.
(Magnified.)
6. Diagonal Patterns, from Irish MSS. at St. Gall. 9th cen-
tury. (Magnified.)
7. Interlaced Ornament, from ditto.
8. Interlaced Animals. Gospels of Mac Durnan. (Magni-
fied.)
9, 10, 13. Diagonal Patterns.   Gospels of Mac Durnan.
(Magnified.)
11. Diagonal Patterns, from Gospels of Lindisfarne. (Magni-
fied.)
14. Terminal Border of Interlaced Animals, from Gospels of
Lindisfarne. (Magnified.)
15 and 17. Panels of Interlaced Beasts and Birds, from Irish
Gospels at St. Gall. 8th or 9th century.
16. Initial Q, formed of an elongated Angulated Animal, from
Psalter of Ricemarchus, Trinity College, Dublin. End
of 11th century.
18. One Quarter of Frame, or Border, of an Illuminated Page
of the Benedictional of z~thelgar at Rouen. 10th
century.-SILVESTRE.
19. Ditto, from the Arundel Psalter, No. 156, British Museum.
-HuMPHBrIEs.
20. Ditto, from the Gospels of Canute, in British Museum.
End of 10th century.
21. Ditto, from the Benedictional of iEthelgar.
22. Terminal Ornament of Spiral Pattern, with Birds. Part
of large Initial Letter in the Gospels of Lindisfarne.
(Real size.)-HumPnuxs.
CELTIC ORNAMENT.
THE genius of the inhabitants of the British Islands has, in all ages, been
indicated by productions
of a class or style singularly at variance with those of the rest of the
world. Peculiar as are our
characteristics at the present time, those of our forefathers, from the remotest
ages, have been equally
so. In the Fine Arts, our immense Druidical temples are still the wonder
of the beholder; and in
succeeding ages gigantic stone crosses, sometimes thirty feet high, most
elaborately carved and ornamented
with devices of a style unlike those of other nations, exhibited the old
genius for lapidary erections
under a modified form inspired by a new faith.
The earliest monuments and relics of ornamental art which we possess (and
they are far more
numerous than the generality of persons would conceive) are so intimately
connected with the early
introduction of Christianity into these islands,* that we are compelled to
refer to the latter in our
endeavours to unravel the history and peculiarities of Celtic Art; a task
which has hitherto been
scarcely attempted to be performed, although possessing, from its extreme
nationality, a degree of
interest equal, one would have thought, to that connected with the history
of ornamental art in other
countries.
1. HISTORICAL EVIDENcE.-Without attempting to reconcile the various statements
which have
been made by historians as to the precise manner of the introduction of religion
into Britain, we
have the most ample evidence, not only that it had been long established
previous to the arrival of
* The Pagan Celtic remains at Gavr' Innis, in Brittany, New Grange, in Ireland,
and, I believe, one Druidical monument near
Harlech, in Wales, exhibit a very rude attempt at ornamentation, chiefly
consisting of incised spiral or circular and angulated lines.
90