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about marriages and divorces。



〃With the decline of power in the Roman empire

came the decline of literature throughout the

world。 In the sixth century the business of bookmaking

had fallen into hopeless decay。 The books

that had been written were seldom read; and the

number of readers diminished with every succeeding

generation。 Ignorance pervaded in all ranks of

society。 The Emperor Justin I; who reigned between

the years 518 and 527; could not write; and

was obliged to sign state papers with the form of

stencil plate that had been recommended by Quintilian。

Respect for literature was dead。 In the

year; 476; Zeno; the Isaurian; burned 120;000 volumes

in the city of Constantinople。 During the

year 640; Amrou; the Saracen; fed the baths of

Alexandria for six months with the 500;000 books

that had been accumulating for centuries in its

famous library of the Serapion。 Yet books were

so scarce in Rome at the close of the seventh century

that Pope Martin requested one of his bishops

to supply them; if possible; from Germany。 The

ignorance of ecclesiastics in high station was

alarming。 During this century; and for centuries

afterward; there were many bishops and archbishops

of the church who could not sign their names。 It

was asserted at a council of the church held in the

year 992; that scarcely a single person was to be

found in Rome itself who knew the first elements of

letters。 Hallam says; 'To sum up the account of

ignorance in a word; it was rare for a layman of

any rank to know bow to sign his name。' He repeats

the statements that Charlemagne could not

write; and Frederic Barbarossa could not read。

John; king of Bohemia; and Philip; the Hardy; king

of France; were ignorant of both accomplishments。

The graces of literature were tolerated only in the

ranks of the clergy; the layman who preferred letters

to arms was regarded as a man of mean spirit。

When the Crusaders took Constantinople; in 1204;

they exposed to public ridicule the pens and inkstands

that they found in the conquered city as the

ignoble arms of a contemptible race of students。



〃During this period of intellectual darkness;

which lasted from the fifth until the fifteenth century;

a period sometimes described; and not improperly;

as the dark ages; there was no need for

any improvement in the old method of making

books。 The world was not then ready for typography。

The invention waited for readers more than

it did for types; the multitude of book buyers

upon which its success depended had to be created。

Books were needed as well as readers。 The treatises

of the old Roman sophists and rhetoricians; the

dialectics of Aristotle and the schoolmen; and the

commentaries on ecclesiastical law of the fathers of

the church; were the works which engrossed the

attention of men of letters for many centuries before

the invention of typography。 Useful as these books

may have been to the small class of readers for

whose benefit they were written; they were of no

use to a people who needed the elements of knowledge。〃



In the more ancient times; however; when MSS。 books

(rolls) were not quite so plentiful there was seemingly

no difficulty in obtaining large sums for them。



Aristotle; died B。 C。 322; paid for a few books of

Leusippus; the philosopher; three Attick talents; which

is about 3;000。 Ptolemy Philadelphus is said to have

given the Athenians fifteen talents; an exemption from

tribute and a large supply of provisions for the MSS。

of aeschylus; Sophocles and Euripides written by

themselves。



Arbuthnot; discussing this subject; remarks that Cicero's

head; 〃which should justly come into the account

of Eloquence brought twenty…five Myriads of

Drachms; which is the equivalent of 40;000。 Also;

〃the prices of the magical books mentioned to be

burnt in the Acts of the Apostles is five。 Myriads of

Pieces of Silver or Drachms。〃



Picolimini relates that the equivalent of eighty

golden crowns was demanded for a small part of the

works of Plutarch。



If we are to believe any of the accounts; the environment

of the art of handwriting and handwriting

materials at the beginning of the fifth century had

contracted within a small compass; due principally to

the general ignorance of the times。



As practiced it was pretty much under the control

of the different religious denominations and the information

obtainable about inks from these sources

is but fragmentary。 What has come down to us of

this particular era is mostly found on the old written

Hebrew relics; showing that they at least had made

no innovations in respect to the use of their ritualistic

deyo。



The invention of the quill pen in the sixth century

permitted a degree of latitude in writing never before

known; the inks were made thinner and necessarily

were less durable in character。 Greater attention was

given to the study and practice of medicine and

alchemy which were limited to the walls of the

cloister and secret places。 The monk physicians endeavored

by oral instructions and later by written

ones to communicate their ink…making methods not

only of the black and colored; but of secret or sympathetic

inks; to their younger brethren; that they might

thus be perpetuated。 All the traditional and practical

knowledge they possessed was condensed into manuscript

forms; additions from other hands which included

numerous chemical receipts for dyeing caused

them to multiply; so that as occasion required from

time to time; they were bound up together booklike

and then circulated among favored secular individuals;

under the name of 〃Secreta。〃



The more remote of such treatises which have come

down to us seem to indicate the trend of the researches

respecting what must have been in those times

unsatisfactory inks。 Scattered through them appear a

variety of formulas which specify pyrites (a combination

of sulphur and metal); metals; stones and other

minerals; soot; (blue) vitriol; calxes (lime or chalk);

dye…woods; berries; plants; and animal colors; some of

which if made into ink could only have been used

with disastrous results; when permanency is considered。



The black ink formulas of the eighth century are

but few; and show marked improvement in respect to

the constituents they call for; indicating that many

of those of earlier times had been tried and found

wanting。 One in particular is worthy of notice as it

names (blue) vitriol; yeast; the lees (dregs) of wine

and the rind of the pomegranate apple; which if

commingled together would give results not altogether

unlike the characteristic phenomena of 〃gall〃 ink。

Confirmation of the employment of such an ink on a

document of the reign of Charlemigne in the beginning

of the ninth century on yellow…brown Esparto

(a Spanish rush) paper; is still preserved。 Specimens

of 〃pomegranate〃 ink; to which lampblack and

other pigments had been added of varying degrees of

blackness; on MSS。; but lessening in number as late as

the fourteenth century; are still extant in the British

Museum and other public libraries。







CHAPTER VI。



INK OF THE WEST。



REMARKS OF ARCH…DEACON CARLISLEWHEN READING

AND WRITING CEASED TO BE MYSTERIESORIGIN

OF THE WORDS CLERK AND SIGNSCARCITY OF MANUSCRIPTS

FOUNDING OF IRISH SCHOOLS OF LEARNING

IN THE SEVENTH CENTURYMONKS NOT PERMITTED

TO USE ARTIFICIAL LIGHT IN PREPARING

MSS。OBSERVATIONS OF MADAN ABOUT THE HISTORY

OF WRITING DURING THE DARK AGESINK…

WRITTEN MSS。 TREASURES。



THE ancient history of the art of writing in more

northern sections of the Western world; William

Nicolson; Arch…Deacon of Carlisle; author of 〃The

English Historical Library;〃 London; 1696; tells very

quaintly:



〃The Danes register'd their more considerable

transactions upon Rocks; or on parts of them;

hewen into various Shapes and Figures。 On these

they engrav'd such Inscriptions as were proper for

their Heathen Alters; Triumphal Arches; Sepulchral

Monuments and Genealogical Histories of

their Ancestors。 Their writings of less concern

(as Letters; Almanacks; &c。) were engraven upon

Wood: And because Beech was most plentiful in

Demnark; (tho Firr and Oak be so in Norway and

Sweden) and most commonly employ'd in these

Services; form the word Bog (which in their Language

is the Name of that sort of Wood) they and

all other Northern Nations have the Name of Book。

The poorer sort used Bark; and the Horns of Rain…

Deer and Elks were often finely polish'd and shaped

into Books of several Leaves。 Many of these old

Calendars are likewise upon Bones of Beasts and

Fishes: But the Inscriptions on Tapestry; Bells;

Parchment and Paper; are of later use。



〃Some other Monuments may be known to be of

a Danish Extraction; tho they carry nothing of a

Runic Inscription。 Few of their Temples were

cover'd; and the largest observ'd by Wormius (at

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