Vellum
Vellum (from the
Latin for "wool" or "pelt") is a sort of
parchment, a material for the
pages of a
book or
codex, characterized by its thin, smooth, durable properties. Originally, the material was made from pig skin, but modern vellum is usually made out of
cotton. The term can also refer to a
manuscript or book written on such material.
Vellum was originally a
translucent or
opaque material produced from
calfskin that had been soaked,
limed, and scudded (a depilatory process), and then dried at normal temperature under tension, usually on a wooden device called a stretching frame. However, animal vellum can include any material made from calfskin,
sheepskin, or virtually any other
skin obtained from a relatively small animal, e.g.,
antelope. Some authorities do not even distinguish between vellum and parchment, although traditionally the former was made from an unsplit calfskin, and consequently had a grain pattern on one side (unless removed by scraping), while the latter was produced from the flesh split of a sheepskin, and consequently had no grain pattern. The important distinction between vellum (or parchment) and
leather is that the former is not tanned but is prepared essentially by soaking the skin in
lime and drying it under tension.
Most
medieval manuscripts, whether
illuminated or not, were written on vellum. Uterine vellum was made in the 13th and 14th centuries from the skins of still-born or even unborn
animals.
Limp vellum or limp-parchment bindings were used frequently in the 16th and 17th centuries, and were sometimes gilt but were also often not
embellished. In later centuries vellum has been more commonly used like leather, that is, as the covering for stiff board bindings. Vellum can be stained virtually any color but seldom is, as a great part of its beauty and appeal rests in its faint grain and hair markings, as well as its warmth and simplicity.
Lasting in excess of 1000 years, animal vellum can be far more durable than paper. For this reason, many important documents have been written on animal vellum, such as diplomas. Indeed, referring to a diploma as a "sheepskin" alludes to the time when diplomas were written on vellum made from animal hides.
Today, due to low demand and complicated manufacturing process, animal vellum is expensive and hard to find. A modern equivalent is made out of cotton. Known as paper vellum, this material is considerably cheaper than animal vellum and can be found in most art and drafting supply stores. Usually translucent, paper vellum is often used in applications where tracing is required, such as architectural plans.
An example of a document written on vellum is the
Irish bog psalter, discovered in July 2006 in a
bog in Ireland.
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Golden Fleece
