DANIEL MC CARTHY, ON THE SHAPE OF THE INSULAR TONSURE

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

p. 142, and on the last page of Matthew s Gospel on p. 141, a frame
composed of a distinctive double rank of interlaced triangles. This re-
peated use of triangular geometry, in close proximity to such sacred
figures, surely represents a controversial and taunting statement by the
artist, suggesting that the portraits of Matthew and John, missing from
47
F. Henry, The Book of Kells (London 1974) 209, The use of plant ornament is one of
the characteristic features of the Book of Kells . . . This Kell s vine . . . . Cf. Mc Carthy,
The Origin , 33 7 for John and the Insular Pasch.
48
Alexander, Insular manuscripts, 48 50, Lichfield . . . second quarter of 8 century .
W. Stein, The Lichfield Gospels (Ph.D. thesis, University of California, Berkeley, 1980)
133.
cel
2003
page
160 ON THE SHAPE OF THE INSULAR TONSURE
Lichfield, may well have been removed as an act of censorship when the
manuscript arrived in a milieu antagonistic to Insular customs.
A similar double rank of interlaced triangles provides part of the
infilled frames which surround the portraits of Matthew and the Sym-
bol of John in the Book of Dimma, which is dated to the second half
of the eighth century and placed in Roscrea, Co. Tipperary.49 On p. 2
is a portrait of Matthew, apparently closely related to that of Echter-
nach, except that here the artist has illustrated a deep V in the centre
of his hairline, cf. figure 2 (f). Like the corresponding image in Durrow,
the viewpoint is such that no crown is visible, and the representation is
clearly that of the Insular tonsure, cf. figure 1 (d). Now it has been men-
tioned above that Dimma, p. 30, represents Mark wearing the Roman
tonsure; however, any possibility that the artist was expressing a neutral
position in the tonsorial controversy disappears when all four Evangelist
portraits are compared. The portraits of Matthew and John s Eagle are
both given elaborate frames partially filled with triangle interlace, and
the portraits positioned gracefully therein; Mark and Luke (no tonsure),
on the other hand, are given bare frames of two parallel lines against
the upper of which, in both cases, their head is jammed. In this way the
artist has made graphically clear how his feelings differ with regard to
the two tonsures and, indeed, the two pairs of Evangelists. Finally, to
complete this review of Gospel references to the Insular tonsure, f. 12v.
of the Book of Mulling, dated to the second half of the eighth century,
like Durrow, Dimma and Lichfield s Symbol, portrays Matthew with a
V incision on his forehead hair.50 Thus this examination of the Insular
Gospel texts provides substantial graphic confirmation of the triangular
shape of the Insular tonsure from the books of Durrow, Lichfield, Kells,
Dimma and Mulling, all of which are associated with monasteries or ar-
eas where there is good reason to believe that the Insular tonsure was
favoured.
Is there any literary evidence to support this conclusion? Muirch� s
Vita Patricii, dated by its editor Ludwig Bieler to between 661 and 700,
was also contemporaneous with the tonsorial controversy. In it Muirch�
relates how two of King L�egaire s druids, Lochru and Ronal, proph-
esied Patrick s coming to Ireland as follows: Adueniet ascicaput cum
suo ligno curuicapite .51 This designation of Patrick as ascicaput , is
literally ascia+caput= axe-head , and, since it combines the connota-
tion of cutting with that of the head , it seems most probable that it
refers to Patrick s tonsure. Now axes, of course, were made in many dif-
ferent shapes according to their purpose, but of them all the battle-axe
was by far the most widespread and, moreover, its basic profile scarcely
49
Alexander, Insular manuscripts (Book of Dimma), p. 69. illustration 222 (Matthew),
223 (Mark), 224 (Luke), 225 (John s eagle).
50
Ibid., (Book of Mulling), pp. 67 8, illustration 210.
51
L. Bieler, The Patrician texts in the Book of Armagh (Dublin 1979) 76 7; Bieler
translated this as There shall arrive Shaven-head, with his stick bent in the head .
cel
2003
page
DANIEL MC CARTHY 161 [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

pobieranie @ do ÂściÂągnięcia @ ebook @ download @ pdf