Calligraphy & Illumination
The very first scroll of The Barony of Marinus.
A map of some of The Knowne World (East Coast of North America)
(Bottom) Local SCA scribes work on their craft.
During the middle ages, scribes tended to be monks working to make copies of religious books. Some scribes were hired artists that had wealthy patrons who wanted their own personalized copies of the great works. Illumination was mostly used for decorating the pages of books and often described the text in stylized pictures. One of the most commonly illuminated books was the Book of Hours, which was a collection of the text for each liturgical hour of the day and often included calendars, prayers, psalms and masses. There are many great extant examples of these for modern scribes to study.
What do SCA scribes do? SCA scribes study
period manuscripts and produce documents which accompany awards that are
presented in court.
There are many different styles of calligraphy and illumination. These scribal
forms have evolved over the centuries and were adapted and altered to suit the
needs of each culture it moved through. Islamic illumination excelled at
intricate vine-like designs, and in many Christian texts, saints were
represented in a very stylized manner to better show their holy presence.
Scribal Calligraphy - putting words on paper (or vellum, parchment,
papyrus, etc...). This is usually done with calligraphy nibs and ink and
sometimes with brushes depending the style.
Illumination - decorating the page. This is commonly done with
gouache (opaque watercolor). Some period pigments however can be toxic and
those must be used with caution. Acrylics and oils are not used due to their
modern materials. Gold leaf is used with medieval adhesion recipes (gesso, fish
glue, Armenian bole, etc).
Wordsmiths - coming up with flowery wording for scrolls. This is
where someone with a poetic bent can get involved.
For more information & beginner aids, visit these links:
Need to make a scroll for a Baronial Award?
All text for Baronial Awards are found in the Word.doc below
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MarinusAwardsTexts.doc Size : 44.5 Kb Type : doc |
(Above) A scroll presented to Lady Aislinn for her service to Barony and Kingdom