Masterpieces see the Light
When the monks of Saint-Michel worked under flickering candlelight as wind and waves swirled around the isolated Mount at almost the end of the known world, little did they realise that one day the fruit of their years of labour would seen by many thousands of tourists. Their beautiful illuminated monastic manuscripts, many dating back a dozen or more centuries, and 4,000 ancient texts, are housed in an ambitious new museum near the place d’Estouville at Avranches in Normandy. The town has been linked to the monastery since 1791 but only now has it begun to make these masterpieces available to more than a handful of Latin scholars.
The new museum, Le Scriptorial, is due to open in Spring 2006. It will be fiendishly interactive, with 22,000 computerised images, enough to ensure that children, especially, stretch their imaginations in spontaneous play. Any adult sent packing by their offspring because the exhibits are so interesting, will have to content themselves with learning how the multi-coloured inks were produced and looking at a fascinating display of precious objects.
Admission charge: adults 7 Euros, children 4 Euros.
Further information 00 33 2 33 79 57 00
