Erasing and Rewriting in Manuscript Cultures: Practices of Text Obliteration and Manuscript Reuse in a Global Perspective

Erasing and Rewriting in Manuscript Cultures: Practices of Text Obliteration and Manuscript Reuse in a Global Perspective

Edited by: Michele Cammarosano 

 

Across the most diverse societies, the reuse of writing surfaces in contexts such as learning to write, note-taking, literary creation, and bookkeeping has been not only desirable but essential to optimising resources. In these contexts, it has been typical to use erasable media of various kinds – a practice which in turn has had important implications for palaeography, literary creation, and virtually every aspect related to writing. Manuscript cultures addressed the quest for rewritability through using permanently recyclable materials such as clay and wax tablets, special technologies such as erasable coatings, and ingenious strategies for reusing papyrus, parchment, paper, wood, and more. This volume systematically explores the fascinating intersection between the potential ephemerality of the written word and the reusability of its supports. It combines a theoretical framework on ‘rewritability’ with case studies on materials, related technologies and their interplay with competing techniques, spanning from ancient Mesopotamia to present-day Nigeria, from Egypt to Japan, from Greece and Rome to the Arab world. In doing so, the volume illuminates a crucial aspect of cultural history relevant to anyone studying the written word.  

 

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111682983

eBook ISBN: 9783111682983

Hardcover ISBN: 9783111682730

Keywords for this book

writing technologies; erasure techniques; recycling manuscripts; palimpsests

Audience(s) for this book

Scholars of literary, Islamic, classical, medieval, manuscript studies, Egyptology, history, codicology

Creative Commons

BY-NC-ND 4.0

Safety & product resources

• Manufacturer information:
  Walter de Gruyter GmbH
  Genthiner Straße 13
  10785 Berlin

Frontmatter

Open Access

	I
Contents Open Access

	V
A Framework for the Analysis of Rewriting Practices, and Three Case Studies: Clay Tablets, Wax Tablets, and Erasable Coatings Michele Cammarosano Open Access

	1
The Future of the Past: Rewriting as a Cultural Practice from Handwritten Artefacts to the Digital Age Marilena Maniaci Open Access

	63
Clay and Wax
A Restorer’s Look at Rewritable Media: Cuneiform Clay Tablets in Conservation Carmen Gütschow Open Access

	75
Temporality on Clay Tablets: When the Component Parts of a Cuneiform Document Were Committed to Clay Jon Taylor Open Access

	115
Erasing Signs and Lines on Old Assyrian Cuneiform Clay Tablets Cécile Michel Open Access

	161
Ashurbanipal and Objects for Esagil and Ešarra: A Case Study of Erasing, Removing, and Replacing Texts at the Height of the Assyrian Empire Jamie Novotny Open Access

	191
Refill, Reuse, Recycle? Reusing Wax Tablets in the Roman North-western Provinces Anna Willi Open Access

	217
Some Remarks on the Lexicon of Erasure between Antiquity and Middle Ages Serena Ammirati Open Access

	255
From Wax Tablets to Codices: The Possible Influence of the Stylus Holder on the Structure of Early Multi-gathering Codices Georgios Boudalis Open Access

	263
Wax Tablets as Writing Media during the Middle Ages Thomas Wozniak Open Access

	309
Papyrus, Parchment, Paper, and Wood
Reasons for Papyrus Reuse in Ancient Egypt Elena L. Hertel Open Access

	335
Coptic Palimpsests: When, Where, and Why? Paola Buzi Open Access

	357
How to Erase Writing According to Recipes from the Arab World: Textual Analysis of Premodern Technical Recipes Sara Fani Open Access

	373
How to Erase Writing According to Recipes from the Arab World: Replication and Analytical Report Claudia Colini, Giuseppe Marotta, Sowmeya Sathiyamani, Valentina Yañez Langner, Annie Muller, Katerina Grigoriadou and Chen Yu Open Access

	411
Transient Texts: Erasable Writing on Wood, Sand, and Metal in Northern Nigerian Islam Andrea Brigaglia and Dahir Lawan Mu’az Open Access

	439
Writing and Rewriting Wooden Tablets in Seventh- and Eighth-Century Japan: The Mokkan Used for Learning Antonio Manieri Open Access

	475
Contributors Open Access

	503