Manuscripts
literally, writings of any kind, whether on paper or any other material, in contradistinction to printed matter. All the existing ancient manuscripts are written on parchment or on paper. The paper is sometimes Egyptian (prepared from the real papyrus shrub), sometimes cotton or silk paper (charta bombycina). Black and colored inks were used, but the latter chiefly for ornamentation. On rare occasions gold and being called "palimpsests."
The art of illuminating manuscripts dates from the remotest antiquity. The Egyptian papyri were ornamented with vignettes or miniatures attached to the chapters, either designed in black outlines or painted in primary colors in distemper. From the 8th to the 11th century the initial letters in use were composed of figures of men, quadrupeds, fishes, birds, etc. In the 16th century the art of illumination became extinct. Some attempts have been made to revive it by adorning paper, parchment, and vellum with designs in color or metals.