‘Ther is also made of Sheepis skyn,
Pilchis & glovis to dryve awey the cold
Ther- of also is made good parchemyn,
To write on bookes in quaiers many fold‘

(John Lydgate’s poem ‘A Debate between a Horse, Goose and Sheep,” Furnivall, Political, Religious, and Love Poems, lines 365–68, 30)

In August 2022 I undertook a visiting research fellowship at Aberdeen University Library in order to research Scottish manuscripts for two chapters which I was invited to write for The Edinburgh History of the Book in Scotland, volume 1 (to 1707), forthcoming with Edinburgh University Press. These chapters cover the development of manuscript illumination in Scotland and imported manuscripts. This work also now provides the initial groundwork for some of the case studies which I will investigate in greater detail in Scotland on Parchment.

One particular aspect of this project looks at a literary understanding of the use of parchment during this period in Scotland. What did it mean to write on animal skin? What did medieval Scottish writers say about the process of writing or drawing on animal skins? And how were parchment imperfections viewed? Another facet of the project examines the pigments and materials used in manuscript production at this time. What can we say about the importation, vs native production, of pigments and metals used by Scottish manuscript illuminators during this period? and how did these differ to those used by continental illuminators?