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Article: Epic story of a poet who never existed.(Column)
- Article from:
- Daily Mail (London)
- Article date:
- February 9, 2005
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Solo Syndication Limited. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: ALLAN MASSIE
IT was the first Scottish book to be a bestseller throughout Europe.
Goethe, the greatest of German poets, thought it the equal of Shakespeare.
Napoleon never travelled without a translated copy and had the imperial apartments in his palace of the Tuileries decorated with murals inspired by it - depicting its heroes welcoming his soldiers as they passed over to the Elysian Fields.
He even read it as the ship carried him to his final exile on St Helena. Yet it is doubtful if more than a handful of living Scots have done more than dip into it.
The book is usually known as Ossian - though its title was ...