Pulling beards
Object number: ROMGH.1999.22
Type: Drawing
Technique: Drawn
Material: Paper, Pen and ink, Pencil
Width: 25.4cm | Height: 20.2cm
Production date: 1920 - 1962
George Bain used the images in his copy of Sir Edward Sullivan’s volume on the Book of Kells to further his studies of Celtic design. This drawing is clearly the result of his looking intently at one small section of the famous Chi-Rho page from St Matthew’s Gospel. The ‘beard pullers’ panel appears at the right of the page.
Bain’s annotations show that he enlarged the design 7¾ times. He wanted to show clearly how the interlaced figures relate to one another.
Bain remarks that the patterns on the figures are hard to distinguish in the photographic print of the original. It’s hardly surprising when one sees what a small element of the overall page design he is analysing. He also draws attention to similar figures appearing in two other places in the Book of Kells. This demonstrates how widely he was scouring the Sullivan plates for decorative elements that would serve his investigative needs.
TCD MS58 folio 34r Trinity College Dublin and Sullivan, E 1920 The Book of Kells plate IX
See Bain's Celtic Art, Methods of Construction page 115, Plate 14
Author: Alastair Morton
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