© Madrid, Real Academia de la Historia, Cód. In northern Visigothic script codices, the layout that was frequently used was also that of three columns, but only until the 11th century, and the pricking could be made as in the southern examples or, more often, following the “continental style” by French influence. Only if the text was not divided into columns, the pricks would be in the outer margins this was the “continental style”. If there were three columns, which was the preferred distribution for southern codices, then the pricking would be made near the third column (in the second space left in between). When the layout of the page was designed for presenting the text in two columns, the holes were made in the space left between the columns. Actually, it was made right in the middle of the page! In Visigothic script manuscripts, especially in those made and written in the Mozarabic communities of the south, the pricking for the horizontal lines was not always made in the outer margins. There are two techniques alluded to here that were not executed in the same way in Visigothic script codices than in any other medieval manuscripts:
This type of ruling was replaced by drawing lines with a pencil or pen, which left more visible traces on the surface of the page (called ‘plummet’).” Lines were then drawn between these holes, usually with the help of a ruler… Until the early twelfth century the ruling was done by pressing down on the parchment with a sharp object, producing a “gutter” that would guide the scribe’s pen (called ‘dry point’). To add these guiding lines to the blank page, the scribe would prick tiny holes in the outer margins, as well as in the upper and lower ones. “A medieval page consisted of both horizontal and vertical ruling.
Moreover, it was not even the same in all areas of the Iberian Peninsula!
The process of making was the same for the almost 400 hundred codices gathered in the catalogue, but, was also the same the way of executing it? Do this type of codices have anything distinctive that allow us to recognise them not only for the script in which they were written or for the Mozarabic style illuminations they tend to include? In fact, they have. The preparation of the page was not exactly the same for Visigothic script codices than for Caroline minuscule ones. Having this information well organised and explained left me thinking about my Visigothic script codices. Quill explains how was the process of choosing the writing support, organising the pages, preparing them for writing, how was the process of copying and correcting the text, adding the elaborated initials or illuminations we all love from medieval manuscripts, a binding, and, finally, how were these books used. As the authors of this new – and gorgeous – site state Quill “gives you a tour through the making of the medieval manuscripts”, explaining in a very clear and straightforward manner how codices were made and used. A couple of weeks ago, it was launched another great resource to add to the collection of websites dealing with medieval manuscripts: Quill.
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