Codex Gigas - The Devil's Bible
75 kilograms. 624 pages. That's the weight of the mysterious Codex Gigas, which literally means "big book." This heavy manual, written in Latin, preserves a dark legend that begins in the Podlazice Monastery (Czech Republic) in 1230. It is also known as the Devil's Bible.
According to experts, it would have taken approximately 30 years to write a book containing the Old and New Testaments; two works by Flavius Josephus: the "Ars medicinae" or The Art of Medicine; the "Etymologies" by Isidore of Seville; a calendar; and the "Chronicle of the Bohemians" by Cosmas of Prague, among other enigmatic texts. However, according to myth, the Codex was written by hand in a single night by a single man: a Benedictine monk, known as Hermann the Recluse, whose intention was to redeem himself or save his life on the eve of his execution. The only way the monk saw himself capable of completing the impossible task was with the help of the devil. So, after selling his soul, the scribe was able to fulfill the assignment and obtain his freedom. Legend holds that this pact with the devil could explain why the Prince of Darkness is so prominently depicted on one of the codex's pages. However, it is not known where this legend originated and it is suspected that it was propagated religiously.
Although portraits of the Devil were common in medieval art, his representation in the Codex Gigas is notable for presenting him on a single large page.
From there, it is said that the monastery fell into disgrace, and the haunting work would become part of the rare book collection of Emperor Rudolf II of Habsburg, who was able to incorporate it into his haunting library at the end of the 16th century after a long journey.
The next mention of the Codex Gigas is when Rudolf II brought it to his castle in Prague in 1594. It remained there until the Swedish siege of the city at the end of the Thirty Years' War in 1648. The Swedish army sacked the city, and one of the treasures they took was the medieval manuscript. Thus, it ended up in Stockholm, where it miraculously survived a devastating fire. The book attracted the attention of historians and scientists, many of whom called it the "Devil's Bible" and recognized it as one of the wonders of the age. After so much talk, common in those centuries, the National Library seems immune to the codex's curse, and many people visited it. During its year-long loan in Prague, protected by a wooden cover, in the first week alone, ten thousand people came to admire this medieval gem.
The gigantic medieval manuscript contains 624 pages made from the skins of 160 different animals.
Subsequent studies have shown that the handwriting in the manual indicates that it was written by a single person using a type of ink obtained from crushed insects.
It is true that the hand of the "fallen angel" is not behind the pages illuminated with red, blue, yellow, green, and gold inks. However, its grandiose content, interspersed with spells, medicinal cures, obituaries, and mysterious texts, remains an enigma to this day.
Many hidden messages remain undeciphered, and its supernatural nature has sparked the interest and obsession of countless souls who have sought to obtain the codex illicitly. This is why the work remains in the National Library of Sweden, where it has been on public display since 1819.
The Codex Gigas left Swedish territory only twice. The first time was in 1970, to be exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the second time was in 2007, when it returned to Prague to be exhibited at the National Library of the Czech Republic.
Galobart Books is meticulously working on a facsimile edition of this incredible work, which treasures great mysteries, to be added to the libraries of enthusiasts of the enigma and beauty of history. In a different size and weight.
