New artwork inspired by the Book of Ballymote presented to the Royal Irish Academy
Inspired by The Scholar’s Primer text found in the Book of Ballymote, scribal artist and parchment-maker Thomas Keyes has presented a contemporary artwork on parchment to the Royal Irish Academy.
The Royal Irish Academy was recently presented with a new artwork by scribal artist and parchment-maker, Thomas Keyes, inspired by the Book of Ballymote (RIA MS 23 P 12). The piece is called “Anrocomraircnicsiumairne”, meaning ‘all the mistakes which we have committed’. Carried out on specially prepared parchment, it is a contemporary illuminated version of the Old Irish Scholars’ Primer (Auraicept na nÉces), contained in the Book of Ballymote. The Scholars’ Primer provides an origin story for the Irish language that is embedded in biblical universal history. It serves as a warning of man’s relationship with technology and the power of the written word. The thematic title word is quoted in the Primer as an example for the longest word in Irish.
The piece was commissioned as part of the research project, OG(H)AM: Harnessing digital technologies to transform understanding of ogham writing, from the 4th century to the 21st. The project is a collaboration between the University of Maynooth and the University of Glasgow, which is jointly funded by Irish Research Council and the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council under the UK–Ireland Collaboration in Digital Humanities Research scheme. The purpose of the project was to further the understanding of ogham, and particularly to extend the study beyond stone monuments by including examples of ogham on portable objects and in manuscript form. The Royal Irish Academy’s collection includes rare examples of manuscript ogham, which were a central feature of the project. These examples are explained in more detail in a video developed by the project, which is available here (RIA manuscripts feature from 15.28 mins).
The artwork was formally launched at an event in Academy House. Dr. Deborah Hayden gave a short lecture on manuscript ogham in the RIA collection, setting the context for the work. Thomas Keyes then described his artistic process and explained how themes present in the Book of Ballymote, particularly the account of the Tower of Babel in the Scholar’s Primer, caused him to reflect on information and knowledge in the digital age.
Pat Guiry, President of the Royal Irish Academy, accepted the artwork on behalf of the Academy, commenting:
Thomas has blended historical reverence with contemporary innovation, creating a work that speaks to both our heritage and our present-day concerns. He has successfully captured the importance of the written word using a manuscript that has survived for over 600 years since it was first created in 1391. This artwork is a bridge between the past and the present – we can only imagine what the next 600 years will bring and if people in the year 2,657 will also reflect on ‘all the mistakes which we have committed’ as quoted in the Book of Ballymote.
The artwork is currently on display in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy.
