St. John Fisher University is proud to present the Book of Kells at Lavery Library. Written around the year 800 AD, the Book of Kells contains a richly decorated copy of the four gospels in a Latin text. The gospels are preceded by prefaces, summaries of the gospel narratives and concordances of gospel passages. In all, there are 340 folios (680 pages) of illustrated manuscript.
The original Book of Kells is housed in Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. In 1990, they authorized the production of a limited number of facsimiles. Our copy was purchased in 1991 as a gift to Fisher and the Rochester Community by Irish immigrants, Irish-American descendants, friends, and members of the Monroe County Chapter of the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Ladies Auxiliary. The facsimile at Lavery Library is Number 765 of a limited edition of 1480 books worldwide.
Our facsimile copy comes with a decorative case, and a companion volume, which explains more about each folio, and the history of this illuminated book.
