Nor shall thy title be marked with minium, nor thy leaf
scented with cedar-oil. Nor shalt thou bear horns of ivory or ebony upon
thy front."
There are many allusions in these pathetic lines which would bear
annotation, but space forbids. The one point is the use of minium.
CHAPTER II
VELLUM AND OTHER MATERIALS
Difference between vellum and parchment--Names of different
preparations--The kinds of vellum most prized for illuminated books--The
"parcheminerie" of the Abbey of Cluny--Origin of the term
"parchment"--Papyrus.
As vellum is constantly spoken of in connection with illumination and
illuminated books, it becomes necessary to explain what it is, and why
it was used instead of paper.
We often find writers, when referring to ancient documents, making use
of the words parchment and vellum as if the terms were synonymous; but
this is not strictly correct. It is true that both are prepared from
skins, but the skins are different. They are similar, but not the same,
nor, indeed, are they interchangeable. In point of fact, the skins of
almost all the well-known domestic animals, and even of fishes, have
been used for the purpose of making a material for writing upon.
Specifically among the skins so prepared were the following: the
ordinary lambskin, called "aignellinus"[2]; that prepared from stillborn
lambs, called "virgin parchment.
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