An introduction to illuminated manuscripts

The term "manuscript" comes from Latin "handwriting". All books must be written by hand before invention invention. This is a time-consuming and labor-intensive process, which can take months to years. Paper appeared in Southern Europe since the 12th century, but paper was not used until the end of the Middle Ages - paper mills in the UK were not built until the 15th century. Prior to this, the usual writing instruments were parchments made from the skin of the stretched animal (also known as parchment). For large manuscripts, it is necessary to have cowhide leaves or sheepskin to create folded paper of 2 to 4 pages, and in the case of thick books the entire cowhide is required. Therefore, medieval books are expensive items

Some manuscripts are more precious by "lighting". This term comes from "Lights up" or "Enlightenment" in Latin. It refers to the use of vivid colors and gold to decorate the initials or express the entire scene. Although initials may be purely decorative, they are usually used with text to mark important paragraphs, to emphasize the meaning of text or to comment.

The British Library has the world's best collection of lighting manuscripts, some of which are comparable to others. This trip will allow you to easily see some of the treasures of the library and some of the history of Western manuscript lighting.

To see the introduction of the manuscript for that period, please select the date range below. Click on the image to display the enlarged view, the detailed manuscript and its meaning.

Most of the surviving lighting scripts come from the Middle Ages, so most are inherently religious. Illuminated manuscripts are written with the highest parchment paper quality called parchment. In the 16th century, the introduction of printing and paper brought about a rapid decrease in lighting, but for very wealthy people, lighting manuscripts continued to be produced in small quantities. Early medieval illuminated manuscripts are the best examples of medieval paintings, indeed, in many areas and eras, they were the only surviving examples of paintings before the Renaissance.

Art historians classify illuminated manuscripts as historical times and types including but not limited to antiquities, islands, Carol manuscripts, Otto manuscripts, Roman alphabet manuscripts, Gothic manuscripts, and Renaissance manuscripts. There are some examples in the latter period. Types of books are usually heavy and bright, sometimes called "display books". In the first millennium, these are most likely to be Gospels such as Lindis Pastor and Kells. During the Romanesque times, a large number of completed Bibles were created. One was Sweden, three librarians needed to lift it. In the days of Gothic and Gothic, many poems were illuminated in large quantities. Finally, the "book of time", usually a personal spiritual book of wealthy amateurs, is often enriched in the Gothic era. Other books are constantly being illuminated, whether they are etiquette or obscene