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Book of Kells

Unlocking the Enigma

By: Victoria Whitworth

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Hardcover | 3 February 2026

At a Glance

Hardcover
224 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
19.8 x 25.4 x 3.0

Hardcover

RRP $69.99

$52.75

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A new and definitive account of one of the most famous and mysterious manuscripts in the world.

The Book of Kells is a mystery. It is distinct from all copies of the gospels from the early Middle Ages, not only in the quality and amount of its decoration but also in the peculiarities of the ordering of its contents, the oddness of its apparatus, the appearance of the script, the interplay of text and ornament, and the erratic forms of its Latin. Scholars cannot agree on the number of scribes and artists involved; or establish the purpose of the Book; or decide whether its oddities are the result of incompetence or carelessness, and how those oddities relate to the minutely careful and deeply meaningful art.

The Book of Kells is probably the most famous manuscript in the world – and Victoria Whitworth's masterly treatment offers something new.

About the Author

Victoria Whitworth is a novelist and academic who explores the culture and society of Britain in the Early Middle Ages, focusing on death, burial and memory. She is the author of Dying and Death in Later Anglo-Saxon England (as Victoria Thompson); The Bone Thief and The Traitors' Pit (as V.M. Whitworth); Daughter of the Wolf and Swimming with Seals.

Industry Reviews

'Attentive, astute and beautiful ... I adored it' Amy Liptrot, on Swimming with Seals.

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