Lindisfarne Island is also known as Holy Island because of the monastery that St Aidan built there in the 7th century. St Aidan was one of the monks living on the Scottish island of Iona, and he came to Northumberland at the request of its king, Oswald, to preach Christianity to his people. He went everywhere on foot, and there is a story that one of his noble followers gave him a magnificent horse to help him on his travels. However,Aidan believed he should share the poverty of most of the people around him, so he gave the horse to the first poor person he met. The monastery became a very important Christian settlement and it was here in the 7th century that the beautifully illustrated Lindisfarne Gospels were produced. The original buildings were destroyed by the Vikings, and all that remains are the ruins of the later abbey. Although the modern route to Lindisfarne is by road, it is possible to see the recently restored marker posts that in the past guided pilgrims to the abbey.