Starting in January, the Scottish National Party councilor Glen Reid, will soon request the Cambridge University Library to repatriate the oldest surviving Scottish manuscript, "Book of Deer," back to Scotland.
The 10th-century text contains annotations written in Scots Gaelic, believed to have been added in the 12th century, and was instrumental in helping archaeologists locate a long-lost Scottish monastery, dubbed the "Monastery of Deer," last November.
In a statement to The Guardian, Reid said that the ancient text is "hugely significant to the Gaelic-speaking community" because it proved that the ancient language was pretty common in medieval Aberdeenshire, saying, "There is a misconception that Gaelic was only spoken in the Highlands and Western Isles."
The Book of Deer's Mysterious History With Scotland
Currently, the story behind how the "Book of Deer" left Scotland remains unclear, but one pertinent theory is that it was stolen amidst the Scottish War of Independence in the late 12th century, as reported by The National.
Starting in 1715, the Cambridge University Library in the United Kingdom had possession of the ancient text, and only last year was it briefly loaned to a Scottish collecting institution, the Aberdeen Art Gallery. During this stint, viewers were only able to look at the "Book of Deer" by scheduling an appointment.
"It's the oldest surviving manuscript from Scotland and yet very little is known about it in the very area where it was written," shared Reid.
He also added that this knowledge gap is due to the book being "locked up, 500 miles away" in the Cambridge University Library's collection. According to Reid, its loan had drawn "huge crowds" that they need to "build" more upon moving forward, to ultimately "right this historical wrong."
Previously, Reid had already tried twice to convince the Scottish government to begin negotiations for the ancient book's transfer through the submission of resolutions during the SNP conference, however, the agenda was not finalized.
The SNP councilor is planning to re-submit the aforementioned resolution in the coming conference next year and said that he will also notify the local Member of Parliament regarding this issue, along with its "neighboring authority" to gauge if they can "exert any influence."
"Last year, Cambridge University agreed to return 116 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria which were taken by British armed forces during the sacking of Benin City in 1897," said Reid, adding that he is "hopeful" that the Charity Commission in the UK would also push the University to return the "Book of Deer" as it did with Nigeria's artifacts.
