Here is the final exhibit, with thanks to one of our readers: the illuminated leaves showing the beginning of the gospel of John from the eighth-century St Gall Gospel Book (click on the images to see them in more detail). In literary terms, each of the four gospels begins in a different way – but the drama of St John’s meditation on words and the Word must have been especially inspiring for scribes producing such elaborate, precious versions of the scriptures as this.