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Celtic art is a form of art closely related to peoples that spoke the Celtic language, as well as peoples of uncertain languages that share many common features in their art with those abovementioned. This form of art is hard to define, as it appears over a large span of time and in a wide geographical space, stretching from the British Isles to modern-day Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic and Croatia as well as Germany, Switzerland and France. The term 'Celt' is used to define a people that spoke a group of languages of Indo-European origin, thought to have spread on the continent from a central point located somewhere in southeastern Europe. This might have happened by means of invasion and large movements of people, although no one can be sure of this because of the lack of written documents. More recent genetic studies show that not all Celtic groups have a common genetic background and this suggests that the culture has spread by diffusion, through trade and other types of social contact, rather than being forced by migration. Because of their lack of written records, we only know of the Celts through the eyes of the Romans and other, more civilized societies of the past and through objects found in their former cities, villages and tombs, objects covered in complex and intricate, highly decorative drawings full of floral and zoomorphic motifs that cover all available space.
practiced in the Kingdom of Northumbria was, thus, based on the Irish Church and the interlaced animal forms practiced as decorations there, although much simpler than what would later emerge, were part of the Anglo-Saxon tradition of Celtic art, also termed Hiberno-Saxon Art. This theory does not hold popularity with the Irish and Scottish people, as it implies that people from England and Wales are trying to obtain credit for what they hold to be an Irish cultural specifity. The other school of thought suggests that there are Middle-Eastern influences to be found in manuscripts such as the Book of Durrow. In truth, there are manuscripts from Coptic Egypt and Syria that have ornaments and artwork that resembles those found in works of Celtic Art. There is a distinctive feature that also offers a clue to this: the coloring on the early patterns. In the Book of Durrow, the strands change colors as they pass under another strand - a convention followed by Eastern artists. Middle-Eastern works also respect the convention of the endless path of the strands, while the Roman and some other knotwork traditions do not - their strands will have one beginning and one end. One might wonder how these precious books ended up so far away from their place of origin during a time when travelling such long distances was neither safe, nor common. In the 7th century AD, Venerable Bede records that a frankish archbishop who was returning from his trip to the Holy Lands lost his course in a storm and ended up on Iona. The man was made to dictate a book to the monks that was entitled De Locis Sancti [Of the Holy Places]. It is not impossible for people like this archbishop to have brought books decorated with interlaced patterns common to Celtic Art. Celtic Art in the 7th century consists of two main types of interlaces, each typical for one of the schools of thought above mentioned. The first one is knotwork. This is composed of a series of convoluted circles and follows two very important conventions: endlessness and alternative crossings. It is considered a mistake to have two or more overs or unders in a row and one can see, by the small number of exceptions, that this was the case. The second type of interlace is the zoomorphic interlace. This uses the same rules of over and under since the forms of birds and animals branch out, each limb, wing, claw or tongue transforming in a strand that can be intertwined. This type, however, does not respect the convention of endlessness, as each tail, tongue or foot will end in a spiral.
The crosses which were found are made of stone. Stones are also considered a symbol of eternal life. The beauty of these high crosses lies in the multitude of scenes engraved on them that show important biblical scenes or traditional Celtic design patterns. Some of the most beautiful crosses are: The Cross of Muiredach in Monasterboice, The Cross of Ardboe, The Cross of Durrow and many others.
The west face pictured right bears many biblical scenes. 1. Adoration of Magi. 2. Wedding at Canna. 3. Loaves and Fishes. 4. Christ enters Jerusalem 5. Mocking or Arrest of Christ ? The West Head bears a crucifixion scene.
The Celts were a realistic people whos rural theology was formed in a very natural context. Tertullian from Cartagina, in one of his writings in 210 AD, referred to the British areas as inaccessible to the Romans, but subjected to Christ, which discloses the existence of early Christianity independent of Rome. Also, Taliesin, a Gaelic poet of Strathclyde, said that "Jesus has been from the beginning our teacher and we have never lost his teaching . The way back to the origins of Christianity in the British Isles passes, as the Celtic knot does, somewhere beyond beginnings or the ends into a continuous state, overflowing with the presence of God, which manifests itself in different ways at different times.