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Art of the Islands book cover
Art of the Islands
Celtic, Pictish, Anglo-Saxon and Viking Visual Culture, c. 450-1050
2015
First Published
3.50
Average Rating
240
Number of Pages

The Celtic, Pictish, Anglo-Saxon, and Viking peoples who inhabited the British Isles and Ireland from late prehistory to the Normal Conquest left behind a rich visual heritage that continues to be felt today. The traditions of each of these peoples has been studied separately, but rarely has the historical interaction of these cultures been adequately considered. Michelle P. Brown remedies this oversight, presenting an extensively illustrated art historical overview of this formative period in the region’s history. Describing the interactions between the region’s inhabitants, she also explores the formation of national and regional identities. Brown ranges across works as diverse as the Book of Kells, the Tara Brooch, the Aberlemno Stone, the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Alfred Jewel, and the Benedictional of St. Ethelwold, showing how their complex imagery can be best interpreted. She also considers the impact of the art of this period upon the history of art in general, exploring how it has influenced many movements since, from the Carolingian Renaissance and the Romanesque style to the nineteenth-century Arts and Crafts movement.

Avg Rating
3.50
Number of Ratings
8
5 STARS
25%
4 STARS
13%
3 STARS
50%
2 STARS
13%
1 STARS
0%
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Author

Michelle P. Brown
Author · 23 books
Michelle P. Brown is Professor Emerita of Medieval Manuscript Studies at the School of Advanced Study, University of London. She was previously (1986–2004) Curator of Illuminated Manuscripts at the British Library. She has been a historical consultant and on-screen expert on several radio and television programmes. She has published books on the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Luttrell Psalter and the Holkham Bible.
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