In recent years scholarship has paid renewed attention to the materiality of the medieval book.[1]

Advances in the scientific analysis of cultural heritage, coupled with increasing interdisciplinarity between the Humanities and the Sciences, have enabled ambitious reinterpretations of the materials and techniques used in medieval manuscript production. Such studies have advanced the frontiers of knowledge in ways previously unimaginable. From revealing the animal species used for parchment through DNA analysis to identifying trends in the use of pigments for illumination,[2] they have enabled the manuscript scholar to move beyond impressionistic readings to offer solid conclusions about this craft activity. The impact of these studies has, however, gone beyond its immediate field of interest to shed light on broader themes and historical questions relating to trade, human mobility, the structure of local economies, and cultural practices in the period.

Sara J. Charles’s The Medieval Scriptorium draws on these scholarly developments to offer a new synthesis of the history of manuscript production between ca. 400 and 1500 CE. In particular, the book centres on the real-life experience of manuscript makers, highlighting how ‘making books in the Middle Ages’ (suitably the book’s subtitle) was a strenuous and very messy business. Indeed, the image with which the book begins – the quasi-ethereal medieval monastic scriptorium, where the godly monk peacefully engages in the copying of Scripture – is swiftly contrasted with that of the scribe who endures the pungent smell of feathers’ pulp in the preparation of quills, and of the illuminator who uses manure as a source of gentle heat for pigment production (p. 187). Charles’s vivid prose, combined with a meticulous handling of the surviving historical evidence, brings to life the environment where scribes, illuminators, and parchment makers operated and, crucially, what they might have seen, smelled, and touched.

The author delivers what she promises. The Medieval Scriptorium takes the reader ‘further on a journey through medieval bookmaking in Europe’ (p. 15), touching not only on technical aspects but also on the textual and artistic cultures of the period. The focus is primarily on the Christian West, particularly in Britain and parts of Continental Europe (France, Germany, and Italy), but the author also acknowledges Eastern Christian practices, as well as Jewish and Islamic manuscript traditions where relevant. The book is designed for a general audience from which no previous knowledge about the topic is expected. Those encountering medieval manuscripts for the first time will find an accessible but thorough survey of book production and consumption over 1000-year period, while the student of the history of the book and palaeography will gain valuable insights about contemporary writing culture (duly illustrated with evidence from real medieval manuscripts) and a ‘step by step’ guide to the production of parchment, ink, and pigments.

Charles adopts both a chronological and thematic approach to the topic and enlivens each chapter with a prefatory fictional account on the daily life of a book maker relevant to the period or theme covered in each session. The first chapter provides essential historical context, exploring the intellectual and material culture of writing from ancient Mesopotamia through to the early days of Christianity. It highlights key changes and continuities in scribal culture (with a marked shift from secular to religious activity), the creation of the codex, and the importance of Christianity as a driving force behind these transformations. Brief citations about the strong views of early Christian writers on the propriety of book decoration also animate the discussion (Jerome of Stridon being one of the greatest advocates for simplicity). It is also in chapter one that the reader will find the first technical explanation of the codex format, complemented with an excellent diagrammatic illustration (p. 41) which aptly lays the foundations for the discussion that follows in the subsequent chapters.

Chapter two steps right into the early monastic world to explore the nature of book production in Western Europe between 500 and 1050 CE. The chapter’s very broad chronological scope risked becoming a stumbling block, but Charles takes the reader by the hand – from the British Isles to the Continent and back – illustrating the development of book production and textual culture against the wider political and religious backdrop of Western Europe, and how they changed in tandem. The ‘Carolingian Renaissance’ and its graphic, artistic, and cultural implications are discussed at the end of the chapter, concluding the first chronological section of the book.

The third chapter focuses on the essential question of how we should understand the medieval scriptorium in the absence of adequate archaeological evidence about its existence. By deploying a variety of textual and visual sources, Charles tackles the ‘mythology of the scriptorium’ (p. 123) and deconstructs antiquarian views of a classroom-like designated room for book production inhabited by several monks writing books in a meditative state. The ninth-century floor plan of the monastery of St. Gallen (Switzerland), which unusually includes a room for the monastic scriptorium, is necessarily the point of departure for this discussion. Charles aptly contrasts this idealised plan of a medieval monastic complex with other types of contemporary evidence, including a brief note penned by an Irish scribe, which evoke the sounds and sights of the natural world that he enjoyed while copying a book.[3] The ‘greenwood trees’, the ‘blackbird verse’, and the ‘blue cuckoo chants’ strongly suggest that the cloister, not the monastic study, was likely the most conducive space for scribal work (in the context of communal orders) due to greater access to natural light. This chapter also offers a modicum of information about the craftsmen themselves. Colophons and other types of scribal inscriptions (signatures, warnings, and curses) are exploited in this section to offer a more accurate glimpse into their experiences. While detail is kept to a minimum in the interest of brevity and clarity, the discussion seems to imply greater frequency in their writing than what was, in fact, the case. Charles rightly acknowledges that colophons were less common in monastic environments, but throughout the Middle Ages (except for a few, very particular, contexts) scribal statements were the overwhelming exception. This is particularly the case for the early Middle Ages, becoming slightly more common after 1200.[4] Given the author’s frequent citation of early medieval Irish scribes (where the writing of colophons appears to have been more acceptable than in most contemporary Western milieux) this section could have been a valuable occasion to delve further into the contrasts between scribal cultures.

Chapters four and five explore the technical and material aspects of book production. Chapter four considers parchment and ink, while chapter five covers the essentials of painting and gilding, as well as the most used organic and inorganic pigments. This discussion is also animated by references to the haptic and olfactive qualities of these substances as constant reminders of the everyday life experience of medieval scribes and book makers. The great strength of these chapters rests, however, on the author’s command of the processes discussed, especially the production of parchment and ink. Charles goes beyond historical sources to share her own lived experience as a practitioner with a profound understanding not only of the techniques but also of the rhythms of nature and how they determine the cadence of book production. The treatment of skins for writing and the recipes for inks and pigments (and their many possible variations) are explored in the requisite detail, and even include fascinating information about how, for instance, the high fat content in sheep skin works as ‘a unique built-in anti-tampering device’ as it is very difficult to scrape ink from its surface (p. 170). A few more words contextualising the ‘chronology of colours’, and how certain pigments replaced others due to lower levels of toxicity, would have helped highlight further the craft knowledge of medieval scribes. The chapter ends with a few pages discussing medieval bookbinding, which would make greater sense as a section in chapter four, which addresses parchment and leather making, which are essential materials to this craft.

Chapter six resumes the chronological narrative to consider the explosion in book production between the late eleventh and the thirteenth century, and the changes observed in patterns of production and consumption. Charles considers the gradual demise of the monastic ‘scriptorium’ in favour of professional workshops, as well as the growing demand for books from the secular elites. While the focus is primarily on the more pronounced shifts from monastic to secular production, the impact of the new communal and mendicant orders, such as the Carthusians and Franciscans respectively, are also emphasised, particularly the mendicants’ need for smaller, more portable, volumes. Given the chapter’s title, ‘The Twelfth-Century Renaissance’, a longer discussion of the crucial role of Arabic works and of the new centres of translation in the Iberian Peninsula for the the transmission of Classical texts and scientific knowledge would have been desirable and topical.

The last chapter takes the reader from the fourteenth century to the introduction of print in the fifteenth, marking the end of the era of manuscript production. Yet, it is here that the reader will find textual and visual illustrations of some of the most sumptuous books ever created. The final flowering of medieval manuscript production was characterised by heavily decorated Books of Hours and Psalters, often commissioned by wealthy secular patrons from skilled professional workshops, not unusually run by secular families based in fixed premises. This was, for instance, the case of the endearing Montbaston couple, which was based in rue Neuve-Notre-Dame, in Paris, and which immortalised themselves – working side by side – in the margins of a fourteenth-century manuscript of their making (p. 279). Despite the lavishness of late medieval book production, technical innovations slowed down significantly in the period, except for the enlargement of the illuminator’s palette, which is rightly noted.

Charles also briefly explores the ‘pecia system’ as an innovative framework through which to produce affordable, yet reliable, copies of key works for university students – another institution that brought about important changes to the world of book production. It would have been useful to examine the patchiness of the evidence regarding the pecia system in a little more detail to offer a clearer picture of how it was not universally applied, despite its successful implementation in many universities. The chapter ends with a brief reflection of the physical and sensory world of the scribe, asking the reader to return to the one of the key points this book aims to make: the inextricable connection between nature and medieval book production.

There are many merits to The Medieval Scriptorium. One of its most salient strengths is the author’s command of evidence, consistently grounding the discussion in carefully selected examples from late antique and medieval manuscripts. The ease with which Charles interweaves different threads of information is also noteworthy. Each chapter places developments in manuscript production against the broader contemporary religious, cultural, textual backdrop, offering a holistic overview of the craft. The conscious effort to spotlight female voices wherever possible is also laudable, given how much past scholarship has favoured (even if inadvertently) the work of male scribes. While the book generally steers clear of jargon, the inclusion of a glossary at the end is a commendable addition.

The book is also very well produced and generously illustrated, containing a range of manuscript colour plates, maps, diagrammatic illustrations, though the usefulness of the manuscript reproductions would have been increased with the addition of shelf marks to the captions underneath each image. This reader was especially delighted by the ‘action shots’ included – that is, photographs from the author’s personal archive (see for instance pages 173-174, 187, 200) illustrating the processes of parchment making, quill cutting, and gilding.

On occasion, due to the narrative character and ambitious chronological scope of the work, there is a loss of detail and nuance in favour of readability, leading to an oversimplification of some complex aspects of medieval book production. Similarly, although the book aims to focus primarily on the British Isles and parts of Continental Europe, it’s hard to overlook the uneven treatment of certain regions, such as the Iberian Peninsula and the Western Mediterranean, which could have provided valuable contribution to the discussion. Greater engagement with new scientific developments in the study of medieval manuscripts would have also enriched this work, which could have become the ideal platform to foreground the innovative contributions of recent interdisciplinary studies to a non-specialist audience.

The Medieval Scriptorium is an accomplished work that displays the author’s excellent command of the topic and breadth of knowledge. Charles has managed to condense the essentials of a highly technical and specialist topic into an accessible and engaging (and witty) book that can be enjoyed by anyone interested in the history of the book and medieval culture. It is also a valuable resource for students of palaeography and manuscript studies and a work which I will certainly recommend to mine. Importantly, it is a powerful and timely reminder that craft activities, modern and old, depended on this unbreakable bond between humans and nature – and how the work of the scribe, and the pages of the manuscripts they created, encapsulate this so beautifully!

^[1] See for instance Gameson, Richard, Beeby, Andrew, et al, The pigments of British medieval illuminators: a scientific and cultural study, London, Archetype Publications, 2023; Holsinger, Bruce, On parchment: animals, archives, and the making of culture from Herodotus to the digital age, New Haven- London, Yale University Press, 2022; Wakelin, Daniel, Immaterial texts in late medieval England: making English literary manuscripts, 1400-1500, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2024.

[2] For the relevant research projects see https://sites.google.com/palaeome.org/ercb2c/home?pli=1; https://www.durham.ac.uk/media/durham-university/research-/research-institutes/institute-of-medieval-and-early-modern-studies/pdfs/teampigmentproject.pdf.

[3] St Gall, Cod. Sang. 904, fols. 203-204. See digital facsimile https://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/csg/0904/203/0/.

[4] On this topic see, for instance, Derolez, Albert, ‘Pourquoi les copistes signaient-ils leurs manuscrits?’, in Scribi e colofoni – le sottoscrizioni di copisti dalle origini all’avento della stampa, eds. Emma Condello and Giuseppe de Gregorio, Spoleto, Centro italiano di Studi sull’alto Medioevo, 1995, pp- 37–56; Gameson, Richard, The Scribe Speaks? Colophons in Early English Manuscripts, H. M. Chadwick Memorial Lectures. Cambridge, University of Cambridge: Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic, 2002.

July 2025