Implementation phases

NARRATED GLOSSARY

Stages of book production and decoration

fascicolazione

progettazione della pagina

scrittura

decorazione

legatura

Fascicolo

Composition of the quire

The quire constituted the basic unit of the structure of the codex and consisted of a series of folios - typically 4 - folded and inserted one inside the other. The parchment quires were arranged so that when the book opened they would face the same sides: the flesh side (smoother and whiter) with flesh; the hair side (more yellowish, with hair follicles) with hair (“Gregory’s law”).

Organizzazione fascicolo

The quire as the architecture of the codex

Examining the constitution and integrity of the quires allows textual gaps to be pointed out, but also, possibly, it can clarify the organisation of the work at the scriptorium or the atelier: Do the ends of the texts always coincide with the ends of the quires? Has the scribe or illuminator changed when the quire was changed? Responding in the affirmative means, for example, that one could assume that the distribution of the work of preparation, copying and decoration was parcelled out.

Foratura

Perforation

Preliminary to ruling (see), perforation comprised making a series of holes in the margins necessary to draw the horizontal lines (rectrici) and the vertical lines (justification) using different tools (penknife, awl, or compass). The most common system was to perforate the folios in one go on a quire that had already been folded and composed, although alternative systems existed for single or double folios.

Rigatura a secco

“Dry ruling”

A pointed instrument, which would leave an engraved mark and a relief on both sides of the folio simultaneously, would be used for dry ruling. The entire quire open and composed could be ruled (old style), but when the book was opened, the groove and relief would be facing, or each folio on the same side could be ruled (new style), which was a more refined system that generated a uniform groove and relief facing.

Margini

Margins

the margins were white space that surrounded and highlighted the black text. Theoretically these should be inviolable, yet they often accommodated notes of attention, drawings or reader comments, which were stratified over time, frequently giving them great cultural relevance. As a part of the codex destined to remain unused, especially in the case of expensive parchment, the margins also represented one of the visible elements of the codex’s value.

Tecnica

Writing as a technique

Since writing is not a natural skill, but an art to be learned, this skill determined, a general division among the literate and the illiterate on political, cultural, and social grounds. In the early Middle Ages, writing technique was almost exclusively confined to the ecclesiastical (religion of the word) and legal (Roman law) realms. In the late Middle Ages, writing spread to the courts, universities, merchants, craftsmen, and artists: the new secular classes and circles.

Scriba e scrittoio

The scribe and the writing desk

A broad and traditional iconography showed a scribe intent at his work of copying, an apostle or a saint writing under divine dictation, a monk performing a task for the community, or a layman transcribing in order to read or study. The writer was always surrounded by his tools: folios, a pen and inkwell, a penknife, compass, ruler, awl, books, and a candle or lantern.

Scrivere nei margini

Writing in the margins

The margins were an invitation to write, either extemporaneously when there was a scarcity of media, or comments linked to the text. Thus, in the margins of these texts, there can be found signs of attention: brackets, dots, small circles; and then manicules, or small hands with the index finger indicating a passage of interest, real comments, or citations from the author. These are small graphic signs that can open our eyes to how people read, studied and wrote.

Finalità e significato

Purpose and meaning

Decoration of the book had a primarily aesthetic and narrative intent. Initials and illustrations, made using more or less precious materials, up to and including gold, affected the cost of making the book/merchandise and then the market cost of the book/commodity, as well as, with its preciousness, and especially policies concerning its preservation over time.

Miniatore

Illuminator

The illuminator or miniaturist would only rarely coincide with the copyist. This was so when the decoration was limited to simple initials or, conversely, if the scribe, for example Bartolomeo Sanvito (1433-1518), was able to perform both functions masterfully. In an early medieval scriptorium, the illuminator would be a gifted monk trained in that art. In an early medieval workshop, the miniaturist would be a specific craftsman or even a painter.

Decorazione nel testo

Decoration in the text

Illumination, in addition to ornamentation, also performed a textual function in support of reading. Indeed, by adapting the size and richness of the initials, different textual partitions, such as the beginning of a text, a chapter, strophe, or a paragraph, could be emphasised. In the Gothic period, this function was emphasised through the hierarchical distribution of decorative elements throughout the text (initials, paragraph marks, or traces of colour).

A cosa serve

What was it for?

Binding constituted the external covering of the codex. Its task was to contain the quires and protect its structure from the mechanical stresses of use and when the book was stored on a shelf. Also, the first visible part often fulfilled an aesthetic purpose linked to the selection of materials and their decoration, which were factors that naturally influenced the preciousness and value of the artefact.

Struttura e parti

Structure and parts

The set of quires was held together by stitching that was wrapped around strips of leather or plant based battens (nervi). The cover, which was anchored through these battens, was essentially made up of three parts: two rectangular boards that covered the block of folios at the front and back (plates) and a connecting part between the two that covered the thickness (spine).

Ri-legature

Re-binding

The binding, intended to protect the book, is the part that would be most subject to wear and, as a complementary element. However, the binding, which was independent from the book’s structure, could easily be replaced if it was faulty or if it did not please a new owner. Actually, very few manuscripts still have their original bindings, rather most have been re-bound at times that were even far removed from the book that they covered.

collation

folio design

writing

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binding

Fascicolo

Quires from the De Balneis Puteonalis. Rome, Angelica Library, MS 1474, De Balneis Puteonalis.

Facing diagram, folio without backing and heal, Maniaci Glossary, Editrice Bibliografica

Diagram of Gregory’s law

Foratura

Example of perforation. London, British Library, Egerton 2976, ff. 20v-21r

Finalità e significato

Uta Codex. Monaco, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, MS. BSB Clm 13601, Evangelistario, f. 1v.

Carolingian manuscript in which miniatures are illustrated in the text, Utrecht, Universiteitsbibliotheek, ms. Hs. 32 (Eccl. 484), Salterio of Utrecht.

Masterpiece of the Ottonian miniature, Cividale del Friuli, Archaeological Museum, MS. 136, Salterio di Egberto, f.34v-35v

Tecnica

Example of Carolingian script. Cividale del Friuli, National Archaeological Museum, MS. 136, Salterio di Egberto, ff. 56v-57r.

Example of Beneventan script. Salerno, Diocesan Museum, MS. s.s., Omiliario, f. 8r.

Example of Gothic script. Salerno, Diocesan Museum, MS. s.s., Pontificale, f. 208v.

A cosa serve

Examples of bindings made in a workshop. University of Rome Tor Vergata CoRLib Restoration Laboratory

Cover. Rome, Angelica Library, MS 459, Book of Hours.

Cover with gems and ivory. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, MS Latin 9388, Cover.