Books Before Print

✍ Scribed by Erik Kwakkel

• Publisher: ARC, Amsterdam University Press
• Year: 2018
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 304
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This beautifully illustrated book provides an accessible introduction to the medieval manuscript and what it can tell us about the world in which it was made and used. Captured in the materiality of manuscripts are the data enabling us to make sense of the preferences and habits of the individuals who made up medieval society. With short chapters grouped under thematic headings, Books Before Print shows how we may tap into the evidence and explores how manuscripts can act as a vibrant and versatile tool to understand the deep historical roots of human interaction with written information. It highlights extraordinary continuities between medieval book culture and modern-world communication, as witnessed in medieval pop-up books, posters, speech bubbles, book advertisements, and even sticky notes.

✦ Table of Contents

CONTENTS
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PREFACE
ABBREVIATIONS
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
FILLING THE PAGE: SCRIPT, WRITING, AND PAGE DESIGN
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1. MEDIEVAL SCRIPT
Chapter 2. CRACKING CODES: ABBREVIATIONS IN MEDIEVAL SCRIPT
Chapter 3. THE EMPTY PART OF THE PAGE
Chapter 4. FOOTNOTES BEFORE PRINT
Chapter 5. THE FIRST PAGE OF THE MANUSCRIPT
Chapter 6. THE LAST PAGE OF THE MANUSCRIPT
ENHANCING THE MANUSCRIPT: BINDING AND DECORATION
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 7. DRESSING UP THE MANUSCRIPT
Chapter 8. HUGGING A MANUSCRIPT
Chapter 9. JUDGING A BOOK BY ITS COVER
Chapter 10. MARY HAD A LITTLE BOOK
Chapter 11. DRAWING WITH WORDS
Chapter 12. SPEECH BUBBLES
Chapter 13. MODEL- BOOKS
READING IN CONTEXT: ANNOTATIONS, BOOKMARKS, AND LIBRARIES
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 14. GETTING PERSONAL IN THE MARGIN
Chapter 15. HELPING HANDS ON THE PAGE
Chapter 16. SMART BOOKMARKS
Chapter 17. LOCATION, LOCATION
Chapter 18. COMBATING BOOK THEFT
THE MARGINS OF MANUSCRIPT CULTURE
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 19. THE INCREDIBLE EXPANDABLE BOOK
Chapter 20. BOOKS ON A DIET
Chapter 21. BOOKS ON A STICK
Chapter 22. SLIPS, STRIPS, AND SCRAPS: MESSAGING
Chapter 23. SLIPS, STRIPS, AND SCRAPS: SCHOLARLY NOTES
Chapter 24. MEDIEVAL NAME TAGS
Chapter 25. POSTERS BEFORE PRINT
Chapter 26. MEDIEVAL BOOK APPS
CONTEXTUALIZING THE MEDIEVAL MANUSCRIPT
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 27. WHERE ARE THE SCRIPTORIA?
Chapter 28. DESKTOPS
Chapter 29. SECOND- HAND BOOKS BEFORE PRINT
Chapter 30. MANUSCRIPTS ON THE MOVE
Chapter 31. THE SKINNY ON BAD PARCHMENT
Chapter 32. DESTROYING MEDIEVAL BOOKS (AND WHY THAT’S USEFUL)
EPILOGUE: THE LEGACY OF THE MEDIEVAL BOOK
RECOMMENDED READING BY SECTION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX OF MATERIAL FEATURES
MANUSCRIPT INDEX
GENERAL INDEX