Parchment - genuine whole animal skin
The data carrier of the past
We owe most of our current knowledge about the past to chroniclers from antiquity to the late Middle Ages. They wrote their chronicles on durable parchment and leather. In contrast to the fragile papyrus, parchment is made from animal skins (leather). The oldest datable parchment finds are debatable. However, finds from around 2700 BC in Egypt are indisputable. Valuable manuscripts and texts can be found on this precious material from antiquity. It consisted and still consists of the skin of calves, cattle, sheep and goats. These skins were cleaned and processed. The fact that parchment was valuable is shown by the fact that it was recycled. This was done by simply scraping away the texts on it.
The universal talent of parchment
Parchment was a sought-after commodity as a writing material for many centuries. However, it was not only used as a writing material, but also as a translucent windbreak in window openings, drumheads and as a covering for shields. Their wood often splintered when struck by swords. It is still used today in the construction of wooden prostheses.
- whole skin approx. 80x60cm
- minimum size, each piece is naturally slightly different
-
cleaned and sanded
- Writableon one side
- approx. 1-2 mm thick
- You will receive a whole roll / skin
- genuine goat parchment
Unique variety
Parchment is a natural material. For this reason, the surface is not as smooth as paper due to the manufacturing process and may well have scars and unevenness. It is precisely these unique surfaces that make this material from antiquity so attractive today. It is relatively easy to work with and makes prints, for example, unique pieces despite their number.
Historically modern design
Especially in art lessons, you can use real parchment to show students that you have great confidence in their abilities. This motivates the pupils and encourages them to perform well. The history of parchment is also interesting. The fact that its production has hardly changed in the last almost 5000 years is fascinating.
Natural skin - unique production
The shape of the parchment is somewhat more irregular and the parchment may have small holes at the edges. The edges of the parchment are sometimes straightened with a knife and/or have irregular coloring.
One of the oldest materials for writing on
The oldest parchment finds are dated by archaeologists to 2700 BC from Egypt.
It was not until the end of the Middle Ages that parchment was finally replaced by cheaper paper, making it a luxury writing material.
The great advantage of parchment over other materials lies in its durability and the fact that it can be used several times. The surface can be made clean again by scraping off older writing with a pumice stone or a penknife.
Parchment consists of an animal skin, generally from goats or sheep, from which the hair and meat residues are removed with the help of lime water and scraping knives. Unlike leather, parchment is not tanned and therefore remains transparent, i.e. translucent.
Pliny secundus on parchment skins
As Pliny the Elder reports, in the 2nd century BC there was a dispute between King Eumenes II of Pergamon and Pharaoh Ptolemy Epiphanes as to who owned the largest library in the world at the time. Pharaoh Ptolemy issued an export ban on papyrus, the most common writing material in antiquity, to prevent Eumenes from surpassing the Egyptian library in Alexandria. As a result, parchment was developed and successfully used in Pergamon as a viable and soon even better alternative to papyrus. The name parchment is therefore derived from the city of Pergamon. Although parchment was not invented there, it was at least significantly improved in quality and developed into a genuine replacement for papyrus, as it could be produced locally and did not have to be imported.
Parchment permanently replaced papyrus as a writing material as it was more flexible and durable. In addition, parchment could be rewritten several times by removing the top layer with pumice stone or scraping iron. As parchment is translucent, lamps and windows with parchment were also used in the Middle Ages.
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