From Manuscript to Print: the Evolution of the Medieval Book

 

Cicero. France, 1522
horizontal rule
This French edition printed in 1522 mimics the appearance of medieval manuscripts. Words are heavily abbreviated and there is little differentiation among the sections of the work– initials, marginal headers, and capitalized words, rather than paragraph breaks, perform this function. A reader has underlined passages in the text and has added marginal comments in order to introduce additional divisions into the solid mass of print.

horizontal rule
Pseudo-Cicero. Opera Ciceronis. Paris: Ioannes Parvus and Iodocus Badius, 1522.
horizontal rule

view image

continue tour

Introduction
the Sacred Word
Churchbooks
Private Prayer
Letterforms
Leather and Chains
Medieval Music
Schoolbooks
How the Classics Survived
Manuscripts in the Age of Print
Evolution of the Book
Appetite for Destruction
Manuscript Facsimiles
Cornell's Medieval Books
credits
home
Cornell University Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections Cornell University Library

Copyright © 2002 Division of Rare & Manuscript Collections
2B Carl A. Kroch Library, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853
Phone Number: (607) 255-3530. Fax Number: (607) 255-9524

For reference questions, send mail to: rareref@cornell.edu
If you have questions or comments about the site, send mail to: webmaster.