Laser Analysis May Revise Date of Lindisfarne Gospels

Submitted by Milica on Wed, 2003-05-21 18:39
A non-destrustive laser has been used to date the pigments of the Lindisfarne Gospels, helping researchers to move the date back to 720 CE. New techniques, among which is a non-destructive laser, have been used to revise the date of the Lindisfarne Gospels. The lavishly-decoratived texts were thought to have been created in Lindisfarne in 698 CE, but new research may place the date closer to 720, about the time of the work of the Venerable Bede.

The Gospels and Bede's work make "the transition from the Greco-Roman world to a new identity for Britain, and a very international one," said Dr. Michelle Brown, the British Library's curator of illuminated manuscripts. The gospels are currently on display at the British Library from until 28 September.

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