Last week marked an exciting reunion for the special
collections team. Our copy of An Tiomna Nua, the 1602 Irish translation
of The New Testament, returned to us after undergoing extensive restoration and
repair at the Muckross Bookbindery in Killarney.
An Tiomna Nua was donated
to the library on 12th of July 2019 by the Ó Dálaigh family from
Athlone. To mark the significance of the donation of such a rare and old book,
the library held an event attended by the Ó Dálaigh family (pictured below).
Local Librarian, Rory Ó hAodha spoke at the event about Uilleam Ó Domhnaill’s
role in publishing the book.
An Tiomna Nua arrived here in very poor condition. With pages coming
apart and others damaged by bookworm, it was entrusted to the care of Paul
Curtis in the Muckross Bindery and Paper Conservation Workshop, where it remained
for five years. While the pandemic accounted for some of that time, much of the
delay reflected the delicate, specialist nature of this project.
Before After
Paul travelled to view other surviving
copies of the book so he could replicate the original binding style as accurately
as possible. Each page was repaired individually and then sewn onto cords of
twine- a technique used in medieval bookbinding.
By the time it was printed in 1602, An Tiomna Nua had
been over 30 years in the making. From 1567-1587, it passed through the hands
of many translators, after which the project was abandoned for six years.
Uilliam Ó Domhnaill resumed the work in 1593 and, almost 10 years later, the
book was printed in Dublin.
The exact number of copies printed is unknown but expected
to be in the hundreds. In a 2019 survey of the surviving copies, Fearghus Ó
Fearghail located 39 copies of An Tiomna Nua across libraries in
Ireland, the UK, Europe, the United States, and some copies in private hands. Ó
Fearghail, however, was not aware of our acquisition when he wrote the article,
so that makes ours copy number 40.
At over 400 years old, An Tiomna Nua is a hugely
important part of our special collections, and we are delighted to have it back
in the library in a much more stable condition.
Repairs on some particularly damaged
pages
1. Before and after
2. Repaired insect damage
3. Before and after
We will be posting about An Tiomna Nua and other
items from our special collections and archives as part of the Explore Your
Archives campaign (29th November-7th December).
Keep an eye on our Bluesky account (@UniofGalwayASC). You might discover a library treasure you never knew
existed!
The Ó Dálaigh family with Rory Ó
hAodha and John Cox, then University Librarian
