Parchment: Difference between revisions
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== History == | == History == | ||
Parchment was officially invented in 2500 BCE by the king of Pergamum (modern day Turkey), though it was likely around from significantly earlier. One of the driving factors of its development was to take away power from Egypt, who produced almost all of the papyrus at the time, and therefore had major control over the industry.<ref name=":0" /> Parchment was first used in scrolls. This was a painstaking process. Instead of rolling up just one long sheet, many sheets of parchment had to be sewn together to achieve the desired length.<ref name=":1"> Robinson, Solveig C. (2014). ''The Book in Society''. Broadview Press: 34 </ref> Hebrews made Torah out of parchment, boosting its importance. People eventually discovered an even better use for parchment. The sheets of parchment were found to be optimal for creating the codex, allowing people to make more advancements towards the modern day book.<ref name=":1" /> | Parchment was officially invented in 2500 BCE by the king of Pergamum (modern day Turkey), though it was likely around from significantly earlier. One of the driving factors of its development was to take away power from Egypt, who produced almost all of the papyrus at the time, and therefore had major control over the industry.<ref name=":0" /> Parchment was first used in scrolls. This was a painstaking process. Instead of rolling up just one long sheet, many sheets of parchment had to be sewn together to achieve the desired length.<ref name=":1"> Robinson, Solveig C. (2014). ''The Book in Society''. Broadview Press: 34 </ref> Hebrews made Torah out of parchment, boosting its importance. People eventually discovered an even better use for parchment. The sheets of parchment were found to be optimal for creating the codex, allowing people to make more advancements towards the modern day book.<ref name=":1" /> | ||
== The Dead Sea Scrolls == | |||
The Dead Sea Scrolls were a bunch of ancient scrolls discovered in the Dead Sea that contained a great amount of cultural knowledge. These scrolls were made out of parchment, and they have darkened significantly in many spots, hiding their contents.<ref>Maor, Yonah, et al. “Parchment Browning-part II: The Dead Sea Scrolls.” ''ScienceDirect'', January 2021, <nowiki>https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141391020303438</nowiki>. Accessed 02 October 2025.</ref> Evidently, parchment served as a very important place for recording information. | |||
== Notes == | == Notes == | ||
Revision as of 11:26, 2 October 2025
Parchment was used as an early equivalent for paper. When parchment was invented, papyrus was still much more widely used, but parchment had several advantages over papyrus. Parchment is more flexible and thin in comparison, increasing its versatiity.[1]
How It's Made
Making parchment is a long process with many steps. It is made from animal skin, more specifically, the inner lining.[1] From here, the skin must go through rigorous preparation before it is ready to be used. The process involves many steps, including washing, stretching, scraping, and being rubbed with various substances.[1] All this needs to be done to create a suitable writing surface.
History
Parchment was officially invented in 2500 BCE by the king of Pergamum (modern day Turkey), though it was likely around from significantly earlier. One of the driving factors of its development was to take away power from Egypt, who produced almost all of the papyrus at the time, and therefore had major control over the industry.[1] Parchment was first used in scrolls. This was a painstaking process. Instead of rolling up just one long sheet, many sheets of parchment had to be sewn together to achieve the desired length.[2] Hebrews made Torah out of parchment, boosting its importance. People eventually discovered an even better use for parchment. The sheets of parchment were found to be optimal for creating the codex, allowing people to make more advancements towards the modern day book.[2]
The Dead Sea Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls were a bunch of ancient scrolls discovered in the Dead Sea that contained a great amount of cultural knowledge. These scrolls were made out of parchment, and they have darkened significantly in many spots, hiding their contents.[3] Evidently, parchment served as a very important place for recording information.
Notes
<references/ >
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Robinson, Solveig C. (2014). The Book in Society. Broadview Press: 33
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Robinson, Solveig C. (2014). The Book in Society. Broadview Press: 34
- ↑ Maor, Yonah, et al. “Parchment Browning-part II: The Dead Sea Scrolls.” ScienceDirect, January 2021, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141391020303438. Accessed 02 October 2025.
