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During the Middle Ages (the period of European history beginning with the downfall of Rome in 476 A.D. and lasting until about 1450), books were copied and illustrated by hand. These handmade books were often called manuscripts. Illumination was the art of illustrating the books with designs and pictures, using gold and colored inks. Some of these illuminated manuscripts can still be seen today, providing stunning examples of the artistry of the era.

Creating a book required a great deal of time and skill. Europeans did not use paper until the late 1300s. Instead, they used animal skins to create vellum (made from a calf's skin) and parchment (made from a sheep's skin). Fortunately, vellum and parchment are able to last a long time, so that works written on them still exist. There are very few examples of illuminated documents created before this era, because earlier books were written on papyrus, which fell apart more easily.

First the vellum or parchment had to be soaked in water and a powder called lime, then scraped and stretched. Once the vellum or parchment had dried, it was folded into halves, quarters or eighths, depending on the size of the book. Then the pages were trimmed and stitched together. The people who copied the text of the books were called scribes. Scribes made the dark ink used to write the text from powdered carbon, which they usually kept in a cow-horn. Pigments from various animal, mineral and vegetable sources were mixed with liquid to make colored inks for the pictures.

If making an exact copy of another text, the scribe would mark guidelines on the top sheet, then use a sharp tool to poke a hole through several sheets at once. When he started a new page, he used the position of the holes to know where to create the guidelines. Before the scribe began copying the text, the illuminator (the artist who painted the pictures and decorations) would mark off the space needed for decorations such as initial caps (the large capital letter at the beginning of a section), miniature paintings, decorative borders, and so on. The scribe would then begin work, pen in one hand to write the words, and knife in the other to sharpen the pen and scrape out mistakes.

The illuminator used methods that are still followed today. First he outlined the drawing. Then he applied a sticky fluid to areas that were to be covered with gold leaf (paper-thin sheets of gold metal). Next he applied the gold, a process called gilding, and burnished the gold by gently pressing it to make sure it would stick to the page then polishing it. During the gilding process, the gold was cut to match the shape drawn in the outline and excess gold was brushed away. Sometimes several layers of gold would be applied for a raised effect that would glitter in the light. After gilding, the illuminator would paint the illustration with colored inks and outline or re-outline his original drawing. Often, parts of the design were then highlighted with white pigment.

Until the beginning of the thirteenth century, most of the scribes and illuminators were religious men called monks. The books they copied were religious works, to be used in missionary work. The decorated pages made it easy for missionaries to find the beginning of a particular section. The pictures depicted the events described in the text. Often the illustrations were designed so that they could be seen from a distance when held up in front of an audience.

People believed that books--especially illuminated books--represented wealth and power, including magical powers. For example, many believed that medicine made from water in which a holy book had been soaked would cure sicknesses. People also feared that they would suffer great pain if they damaged a book. Except for missionaries, the only people who could afford to own books in the first part of the Middle Ages were the ruling class: feudal lords, kings and emperors. Beginning in the early 1200s, as the wealthy merchant class grew, more people wanted and could afford books of their own. To satisfy the increased demand, professional scribes and illuminators who were not monks began to work.

Celtic

The Celtic style of illumination was used in the early centuries of the Middle Ages. The decorations were usually made with bright colors, and often had birds and animals intertwined in spiral designs. Illuminators who used the Celtic style often painted small red dots around the decorated letters, a process called "rubrication." Rubrication was done to create a shadow effect, so that the letters seemed to be lifted above the page. The word, "miniature," meaning a small painting in an illuminated manuscript, comes from the word, "minim," which was the red lead used for rubrication. The example below is from the Lindisfarne Gospels, which was created in the late 7th century. Notice the red dots around the letters.

One of the most famous manuscripts created in the Celtic style is the Book of Kells. The Book of Kells is a beautifully illustrated book discovered in the 12th century in the town of Kells, near Dublin, Ireland. Here is an example of illumination from the Book of Kells. We used the inital "T" from this page as the cover illustration for this issue of Cyberkids.

Romanesque

During the tenth, eleventh and twelfth centuries, the Romanesque style became the one most often used throughout Europe. The first letter of a chapter, called the "initial cap" was often very large, and illuminators would create a painting showing a Bible story or historical event inside the initial cap. The Romanesque style often included decorations using strange animals. The example of the Romanesque style shown below is from a book called Gloss on the Psalms, created in the 12th century.

Here is a close-up view of the inital cap "D" from the page shown above. The painting inside the letter is of King David, sitting on a throne, playing a harp. Notice how the top part of the letter is formed by a mythical animal.

Gothic

The Gothic style was popular during the 13th, 14th and early 15th centuries. During this period, the initial caps were smaller than before, and the paintings were more realistic. Borders and letters were often decorated with flowery vines, called "whitevine interlace." The example of the Gothic style shown below is from the Bestiary of Guillaume Le Clerc, created in the early 13th century (a "bestiary" was a book about the appearance and habits of real or imaginary animals.

Renaissance

The Renaissance period began around 1450 and lasted until the 17th century. The word "Renaissance" means "rebirth." During this time, there was a rebirth of interest in classical art, sculpture and literature. At the beginning of the Renaissance era, a German printer named Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press. Because of this invention, many copies of a book could be printed at once by machine, rather than being copied one at a time by scribes.

However, even after the invention of the printing press, scribes and illuminators continued to create some books by hand using the traditional methods. Illuminations done during this era often were painted to look like they were carved in stone. The illuminators copied ancient Roman designs such as shields, spears, Roman heroes and dolphins. The example below if from Virgil's Aeneid, created in the late 15th century. The initial A was painted to look like a three-dimensional carved letter.

The printing press made it possible to produce books more quickly and at a lower cost. This had an important effect on society, because it meant that people who were not wealthy could also afford to buy books. The result was that information became available to more people.

1. What modern inventions do you think have had the most influence on the way people communicate with each other?

2 Many people today believe that the Internet is changing the way people get information. However, some people are worried that the Internet makes it easy for criminals to get dangerous information, such as instructions on how to make bombs. Parents also worry that their children might see X-rated pictures on the Internet. To solve these problems, some have suggested that the government should not allow certain types of information or pictures to be published on the Internet. Others believe that the government should not have control, because it would limit freedom of speech. They believe it's better for parents and teachers to have control over what children can view rather than to censor information.

What do you think? Enter your own comments.

To learn more about illumination, see The Illuminated Alphabet, Noad & Seligman, Running Press,1994.

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©1995 Julie Richer