29-05-2025
National Museum to unveil rare Irish medieval manuscripts in landmark international exhibition
A landmark medieval exhibition displaying rare manuscripts will be launched at the National Museum of Ireland (NMI) today, May 29.
The free exhibition, Words on the Wave: Ireland and St. Gallen in Early Medieval Europe, focuses on early medieval Ireland and its profound impact on European intellectual and cultural life.
Among the rare manuscripts on display are Isidore's Etymologiae, a 20-volume 7th-century encyclopedia exploring the meaning of words; Priscian's Institutiones Grammaticae, a Latin grammar book containing thousands of Old Irish marginal notes by monks; and the Irish Gospels of St Gall, a rare mid-8th-century illuminated manuscript.
The Gospels feature vibrant and striking portraits of the Evangelists, vivid scenes of the Crucifixion, and the earliest known depiction of the Last Judgement.
These manuscripts will be displayed alongside over 100 extraordinary artefacts, including the Lough Kinale Book Shrine — Ireland's oldest and largest container for a sacred book — the Ardshanbally Brooch, found near Adare in Co Limerick and dating from the 8th or 9th century, and a Viking sword discovered in the River Shannon in 2018.
The exhibition will run from May 30 until October 24.
This marks the largest-ever loan of these priceless artefacts, in what Cathal O'Donoghue, Chair of the NMI, has called "the most significant exhibition at the National Museum, Kildare Street in decades."
The launch will take place in conjunction with Karin Keller-Sutter, president of the Swiss Confederation, who played a key role in securing the loan of 17 manuscripts from the Abbey Library of St Gall in Switzerland.
The manuscripts trace the journeys of Irish monks who travelled across Europe in search of exile, refuge, and learning—bringing with them Ireland's unique artistic and scholarly traditions.
They also reflect a 1,400-year-old connection between Ireland and Switzerland, dating back to the arrival of St Gall in the Swiss city of St Gallen in 612.
An Early Medieval brooch-pin discovered at Ardshanbally last year that will be on display at the NMI. File picture: Fran Veale/Julien Behal Photography
Arts and culture minister, Patrick O'Donovan said: 'This exhibition is a unique opportunity to see these manuscripts in Ireland and displayed alongside a fascinating array of artefacts that reflect their contents.
"It's fascinating to see that researchers today are still discovering new insights into objects over 1,000 years old, and I would like to commend the collaboration between the Museum and the Abbey Library of St. Gall, as well as with UCC and TCD, in this regard.'
Lynn Scarff, director of the NMI, added: 'In addition to the honour of hosting this exhibition, it has been wonderful to have developed and grown the collaborative relationship between the National Museum of Ireland and so many scholars and researchers across Ireland and Switzerland in the development of the project".
