Denmark and Iceland clash over priceless mediaeval manuscripts

The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Thursday, March 28, 2024


Denmark and Iceland clash over priceless mediaeval manuscripts
In this file photo taken on January 25, 2017, Iceland's President Gudni Johannesson (C) looks at historic documents as he visits the collection of Arnamagnaean Manuscript items at the University of Copenhagen, during his trip to Denmark. They recount tales of Viking raids, Norse history, kings and gods: an Icelandic scholar bequeathed his collection of priceless medieval manuscripts to the University of Copenhagen in the 18th century, but now Iceland wants them back. Martin Sylvest / Scanpix Denmark / AFP.

by Camille Bas-Wohlert with Jeremie Richard in Reykjavik



COPENHAGEN (AFP).- They recount tales of Viking raids, Norse history, kings and gods: a priceless collection of mediaeval manuscripts, bequeathed by an Icelandic scholar to the University of Copenhagen in the 18th century, that Iceland now wants back.

The UN cultural organisation UNESCO has called them "the single most important collection of early Scandinavian manuscripts in existence", with the earliest one dating from the 12th century.

Some of the texts -- known as the Arnamagnaean Collection -- have already been returned to Reykjavik, but 1,400 documents are still locked away in Copenhagen.

The jewel of the collection is an almost complete early 15th century copy of "Heimskringla" -- the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas, originally written in the 13th century by Icelandic poet and historian Snorri Sturluson.

Unlike many Icelandic mediaeval manuscripts, which have few decorative flourishes, this version of the Heimskringla is richly illustrated with intricate red lettering on each page.

The Arnamagnaean Collection is named after scholar Arni Magnusson, a historian and literature and language expert who was born in Iceland but died in 1730 in Copenhagen, where he left his 3,000 or so manuscripts.

Each time a document from the collection is borrowed from the university, it is insured for up to five million kroner (670,000 euros, $740,000).

Joint history
Keen to ensure good relations with its former colony, Denmark granted Iceland's recurring request to return part of the collection in the 1960s. A treaty signed in 1965 divvied up the goods.

In line with that agreement, more than half of the manuscripts were turned over to Iceland between 1971 and 1997.

The division of documents between the two nations had for years been uncontroversial, but Iceland's Culture and Education Minister Lilja Alfredsdottir now wants more of the collection given back.

She has raised the profile of the issue and linked it to the construction of a new institute dedicated to Magnusson, which will hold an exhibition of mediaeval documents.

"We think it's important that the manuscripts be located in Iceland to a greater extent," Alfredsdottir told AFP.

Matthew Driscoll, the professor in charge of the collection at the University of Copenhagen, is opposed to the idea, arguing that the remaining manuscripts are part of Denmark's cultural heritage.

The two nations have an intertwined history, Iceland having been under Danish rule from the 1600s until it declared independence in 1944.

Driscoll says the University of Copenhagen has cooperated closely with Reykjavik, digitising all of the works and making them available to researchers.

"These are not things that have been acquired illegally or stolen... Arni owned those manuscripts himself, he was given them or he bought them, and then he left them in a completely legal way to the University of Copenhagen," Driscoll said.

And even in Iceland, there are mixed opinions about whether the texts should be returned.

Haraldur Bernhardsson, a professor of mediaeval studies at the University of Iceland, said he fully agreed with the need to make cultural heritage visible for future generations.

But he added: "I think we can do that in collaboration with the Arnamagnaean Collection in Copenhagen."

Keeping all the Icelandic works in Reykjavik would actually limit the number of scholars and academics who study them, some academics say.

"If you really wanted to request Icelandic manuscripts from abroad, you should perhaps prioritise manuscripts that are not currently being studied, which is obviously not the case with the Arni Magnusson collection," said Bernhardsson.


© Agence France-Presse










Today's News

November 11, 2019

Hermann Historica to offer outstanding and unique objects from antiquity to Art Déco

Gillian Jagger, sculptor whose medium was nature, dies at 88

£1 charity shop vase sells for £484,000

Denmark and Iceland clash over priceless mediaeval manuscripts

Gagosian opens an exhibition featuring works by H. R. Giger and Mark Prent

Marciano Art Foundation is accused of unfair labor practices

Shock in Russia as Napoleon expert confesses to chopping up lover

Like roads, many genetic lineages led to ancient Rome

Barbara Hepworth's first monographic exhibition in Paris on view at The Musée Rodin

Nationalmuseum acquires two self-portraits by Joseph Ducreux

Mitchell-Innes & Nash opens an exhibition of new works by Canadian-born artist Brent Wadden

Most comprehensive exhibition to date of works by Helga Paris opens at Akademie der Künste

A search for ancestors in the desert southwest

PAI's 79th Rare Posters Auction earns $1.7M in sales with resurgence of Art Nouveau

Exhibition offers compelling visual memoirs of four master illustrators' immigrant experiences

Exhibition at Pangolin London comprises a new body of sculpture by Ann Christopher

Elmhurst Art Museum presents 'What Came After: Figurative Painting in Chicago 1978-98'

Olympian Tommie Smith revisits protest legacy in new film and exhibition at the San José Museum of Art

Contemporary Arts Museum Houston opens the first solo museum exhibition of Will Boone

A Toronto bookstore amplifies outsider voices

Plácido Domingo withdraws from Tokyo Olympics performances

From comic book to the mat: chessboxing bout thrills French creator

A forgotten pioneer's art world is resurrected at the Jewish Museum

Rory Pilgrim wins 2019 Prix de Rome




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

sa gaming free credit
Attorneys
Truck Accident Attorneys
Accident Attorneys

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site Parroquia Natividad del Señor
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful