Drucker&McVarish Chapter 3

Medieval Letterforms and Book Formats 400-1450CE

Publishing industry is founded
In early middle ages, moasteries were sole publishers (hand copied) books
Literate public of classical period was lost - literacy more rare in middle ages
Knowledge production and dissemination controlled by church
400CE Codex replaces other information formats
Medieval lettering styles linked to geographic and institutional sites
Some scripts became indicative of region since monks learned from each other
Multiple invasions during this period
evidence of cultural blending available via graphic design trends
Monastic publications made of materials produced onsite only - inks, pigments, parchments
Codex replaces scroll as document format
Magna Carta produced
Auctoritates - Collections of excerpts
Books started to be organized with different strategies, alphabetized, columns, etc.
Marginalia - Added by scholars - Later notes on reading the text
Decretals - Letters written by pope or bishop stating church laws
Living Manuscript - Notes and conversation written in margin space - can take place across time
Architecture of modern book invented during this period - chapters, running heads, indices, table of contents - navigational aides
Colophon at end of book provided details about scribe and production of book
Most medieval works were a mess - not these shining examples
Script - Model of letters
Hand - Actual writing
Elaborate Chancery was produced to make forgery impossible ex. Lettera Imperiale Venice 1523
Uncials (inch high letters) were not used by 700CE bc they made books huge
Scripto Continual - texts without word space paragraph space, etc.
Carolignian Miniscules - Charlemagne tried to encourage this standard way of writing 750-900CE an instrument of empire building
Ramsey Psalter - Example of ENglish adaptation of Carolignian Miniscules combined with other scripts
Different scripts assigned to different areas of study ex. Textura=for religious texts only Rotunda=humanistic studies
Hisotriated Letter contains an illustration
Secular study was recorded in long lines while bibles were in 2 columns
Many scripts became the inspiration for typefaces
Bastarda - "lowborn" writings of scholars v. clerics used for legal docs & letters
Script can indicate geographic origin of texts in medieval docs
Human components were often included, though ability to copy a script perfectly was more prized than creativity
Versals - Uncial forms with intricately woven storkes
Mere strokes of letters can indicate political or religious affiliations
Horror Vacui - impulse to cover entire surface with art
Pattern books were available to make letters
Text books with graphics started to show up for geometry and astronomy
Books on identifying herbs for remedies were very important to healing arts
As publishing became widespread and university students used books to learn, the beauty of the book as a work of art declined
Books were now being published for wide consumption, some printed in vernacular for literates, others printed in pictures for illiterates
Many playing cards (sheet dice) have survived this period though often outlawed
KNowledge production becomes an industry