origin, as Fleury argues, is a moot point, calling for
complicated discussion which would be out of place
here.

The amount of illumination in the existing manuscripts
varies, but the pages chosen for illuminating are nearly
always the same. In the Book of Kells the illuminations
consist of three portraits of the Evangelists, three scenes
from the life of Christ, three combined symbols of the four
Evangelists, eight pages of the Eusebian canons, and many
initials. The Book of Durham contains four portraits of
the Evangelists, six initial pages, one ornamental page
before each Gospel, and before St. Jerome's Epistle, and
eight pages of the Eusebian canons. The Book of Durrow
has sixteen illuminated pages: four of the symbols of the
Evangelists, six pages of initials, one ornamental page at
the frontispiece, one before the letter of St. Jerome, and
one before each Gospel.

The oldest Irish manuscript in existence is probably
the Domnach Airgrid, or manuscript of the Silver Shrine,
also called St. Patrick's Gospels. Dr. Petrie believed the
Domnach to be the identical reliquary given by St. Patrick
to St. Mac Cairthinn, when the latter was put in charge of
the see of Clogher, in the fifth century. "As a manuscript
copy of the Gospels apparently of that early age is found
with it, there is every reason to believe it to be that identical
one for which the box was originally made."[1] But both
case and manuscript are now held to be somewhat later in
date. Another very early manuscript is the sixth century