Fourteen historical manuscripts, supported by other manuscript examples, are used to explore fifteen selected writing styles. Dr Michelle P. Brown analyses the production of the manuscripts, setting them in their historical context and relating them to the people who produced them. Patricia Lovett uses the manuscripts to analyse the letter-forms in detail, and then gives clear guidance on how to write the letters. Each section includes a calligraphic interpretation of the historic letter-form.

This book is the first to put the needs of the historian and the scribe at the forefront. Large-scale examples of the manuscripts are included for letter analysis, with, in most instances, a full page colour reproduction of a page from the same manuscript alongside. Other selected manuscripts with clear letter-forms show the development of that alphabet style throughout the periods under consideration. A whole page is devoted to exemplar letters of each alphabet style, with clear guidelines on how the letters are formed, including punctuation marks, an ampersand (or et ligature) and numerals. Each section includes a specially created piece of modern calligraphy, showing how the hand can be used today.

A fully illustrated exploration of fifteen writing styles drawn from historical manuscripts. Clear examples show how the scripts were developed and used in the past and how they can be written by modern calligraphers.

“The Historical Source Book for Scribes provides a lively, well-illustrated guide to medieval Latin paleography from the capital scripts of Late Antiquity down to humanist hands ... This colorful, clear survey of medieval Latin script is a fine introduction to the subject.”

“A beguiling and beautiful book … The Historical Source Book for Scribes should find a wide readership among practicing book workers and students of book history.”

“For those who wish to learn how to read manuscripts, this book is all that is necessary.”

“[The book] contains excellent illustrations and a wealth of information about the various scribal hands of the middle ages that have been updated for modern use … A fine addition to the calligrapher’s bookshelf.”