Editing Vellum

{{Short description|Animal skin used as a writing material}}
{{Distinguish|Vallum|Velum (disambiguation)}}
{{Other uses}}
[[File:Magna Carta (British Library Cotton MS Augustus II.106).jpg|thumb|right|400px| [[Magna Carta]], written in Latin on vellum, held at the [[British Library]]]]
[[File:1638vellumlarge.jpg|thumb|right|267px|A vellum [[deed]] dated 1638, with [[pendent|pendent seal]] attached]]

'''Vellum''' is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as [[writing material]]. It is often distinguished from [[parchment]], either by being made from [[calfskin]] (rather than the skin of other animals),<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=http://www.archives.gov/preservation/formats/paper-vellum.html |title=Differences between Parchment, Vellum and Paper |publisher=archives.gov |access-date=2016-06-16}}</ref> or simply by being of a higher quality.<ref name="esdaile">{{Cite book |last1=Stokes |first1=Roy Bishop |title=Esdaile's manual of bibliography |last2=Esdaile |first2=Arundell James Kennedy |date=2001 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-3922-9 |editor-last=Almagno |editor-first=Stephen R. |edition=6 |location=Lanham, Md. |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=faqCpauRmRcC&pg=PA114 114]}}</ref> Vellum is prepared for writing and printing on single pages, [[scroll]]s, and [[codex|codices]] (books).

Modern scholars and experts often prefer to use the broader term "membrane", which avoids the need to draw a distinction between vellum and parchment.<ref name="esdaile"/><ref name="ClemensGraham">{{cite book |last1=Clemens |first1=Raymond |first2=Timothy |last2=Graham |title=Introduction to Manuscript Studies |publisher=Cornell University Press |place=Ithaca |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-8014-3863-9}}</ref>{{rp|pp=9–10}} It may be very hard to determine the animal species involved (let alone its age) without detailed scientific analysis.<ref>{{cite book |first=Anthony |last=Cains |chapter=The surface examination of skin: a binder's note on the identification of animal species used in the making of parchment |title=The Book of Kells: proceedings of a conference at Trinity College Dublin, 6–9 September 1992 |editor-first=Felicity |editor-last=O'Mahony |publisher=Scolar Press |place=Aldershot |year=1994 |isbn=0-85967-967-5 |pages=172–174}}</ref>

Vellum is generally smooth and durable, but there are great variations in its texture which are affected by the way it is made and the quality of the skin. The making involves the cleaning, bleaching, stretching on a frame (a "herse"), and scraping of the skin with a crescent-shaped knife (a "lunarium" or "[[lunellum]]"). To create tension, the process goes back and forth between scraping, wetting and drying. Scratching the surface with [[pumice]], and treating with lime or chalk to make it suitable for writing or printing ink can create a final look.<ref name=":0"/>

Modern "paper vellum" is made of plant cellulose fibers and gets its name from its similar usage to actual vellum, as well as its high quality. It is used for a variety of purposes including tracing, technical drawings, plans and [[blueprint]]s. [[Tracing paper]] is essentially the same thing, however the quality level differs, sometimes greatly.{{sfn|Hepler |Wallach |Hepler |2012 |pp=60–61}}<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |url=http://cameo.mfa.org/wiki/Japanese_vellum |title=Japanese vellum – Cameo |website=cameo.mfa.org |language=en |access-date=2017-09-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903010241/http://cameo.mfa.org/wiki/Japanese_vellum |archive-date=2017-09-03 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |url=http://www.americanstationery.com/blog/how-modern-day-vellum-stationery-is-produced/ |title=How Modern Day Vellum Stationery Is Produced |date=2011-07-04 |work=The Note Pad {{!}} Stationery & Party Etiquette Blog by American Stationery|access-date=2017-09-03 |language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903010030/http://www.americanstationery.com/blog/how-modern-day-vellum-stationery-is-produced/|archive-date=2017-09-03|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Terminology==
[[File:Qur'anic Manuscript - 3 - Hijazi script.jpg|thumb|[[Quran]] from the [[7th century]] written on vellum]]
Though [[Christopher de Hamel]], an expert on medieval manuscripts, writes that "for most purposes the words parchment and vellum are interchangeable",<ref>[[Christopher de Hamel]], ''[[Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts: Twelve Journeys into the Medieval World]]'', London, Allen Lane, 2016, Introduction, ({{ISBN|978-0241003046}}), [https://books.google.com/books?id=w93ACwAAQBAJ google books]</ref> a number of distinctions have been made in the past and present.

The word "vellum" is borrowed from [[Old French]] ''vélin'' 'calfskin', derived in turn from the [[Latin]] word ''vitulinum'' 'made from calf'.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=vellum |title=vellum |dictionary=Online Etymological Dictionary |access-date=2014-08-09}}</ref> However, in Europe, from Roman times, the word was used for the best quality of prepared skin, regardless of the animal from which the hide was obtained. [[calfskin|Calf]], [[sheepskin (material)|sheep]], and [[kidskin|goat]] were all commonly used, and other animals, including pig, deer, donkey, horse, or camel were used on occasion. The best quality, "uterine vellum",<ref>{{cite book |last1=Houston |first1=Keith |title=The Book: A Cover-to-Cover Exploration of the Most Powerful Object of Our Time |date=2016 |publisher=[[W.W. Norton & Company]] |isbn=978-0-393-24479-3 |url=https://blog.longreads.com/2016/12/01/hidebound-the-grisly-invention-of-parchment/ |access-date=2 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161202124352/https://blog.longreads.com/2016/12/01/hidebound-the-grisly-invention-of-parchment/ |archive-date=2016-12-02 |url-status=live}}</ref> was said to be made from the skins of [[stillbirth|stillborn]] or unborn animals, although the term was also applied to fine quality skins made from young animals.<ref name="esdaile"/> However, there has long been much blurring of the boundaries between these terms. In 1519, [[William Horman]] could write in his ''Vulgaria'': "That stouffe that we wrytte upon, and is made of beestis skynnes, is somtyme called parchement, somtyme velem, somtyme abortyve, somtyme membraan."<ref>William Horman, ''Vulgaria'' (1519), fol. 80v; cited in Ustick 1936, p. 440.</ref> Writing in 1936, Lee Ustick explained that:

{{blockquote|To-day the distinction, among collectors of manuscripts, is that ''vellum'' is a highly refined form of skin, ''parchment'' a cruder form, usually thick, harsh, less highly polished than vellum, but with no distinction between skin of calf, or sheep, or of goat.<ref>Ustick 1936, p. 440.</ref>|sign=|source=}}

French sources, closer to the original etymology, tend to define ''velin'' as from calf only, while the [[British Standards Institution]] defines parchment as made from the split skin of several species, and vellum from the unsplit skin.<ref>Young, Laura, A., ''Bookbinding & conservation by hand: a working guide'', Oak Knoll Press, 1995, {{ISBN|978-1-884718-11-3}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=G7tUPQdT2hcC&dq=sheep+vellum&pg=PA29 Google books] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118132433/https://books.google.com/books?id=G7tUPQdT2hcC&pg=PA29&lpg=PA29&dq=sheep+vellum&source=bl&ots=Op-7E6tE48&sig=jX7CogBbfQLEvoXSj1Xz2R5xCRg&hl=en&ei=hfyOSvfFFc2hjAfb17n8DQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9#v=onepage&q=sheep%20vellum&f=false |date=2017-01-18}}</ref> In the usage of modern practitioners of the artistic crafts of writing, illuminating, lettering, and bookbinding, "vellum" is normally reserved for calfskin, while any other skin is called "parchment".<ref>[[Edward Johnston|Johnston, E.]] (1906 et seq.) ''Writing, Illuminating, and Lettering''; Lamb, C.M. (ed.)(1956) ''The Calligrapher's Handbook''; and publications of [[Society of Scribes & Illuminators]]</ref>

==Manufacture==
[[File:Portolan by Jacobus Russus of Messina 1533.jpg|thumb|250px|right|A [[portolan chart]] (map) by [[Jacobo Russo]] (Giacomo Russo) of Messina (1533)]]

Vellum allows some light to pass through it. It is made from the skin of a young animal. The skin is washed with water and lime ([[calcium hydroxide]]), and then soaked in lime for several days to soften and remove the hair.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/making/ |title=The Making of a Medieval Book |publisher=The J. Paul Getty Trust |access-date=2010-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125133814/http://getty.edu/art/exhibitions/making/ |archive-date=2010-11-25 |url-status=live}}</ref>
Once clear, the two sides of the skin are distinct: the body side and the hairy side. The "inside body side" of the skin is usually the lighter and more refined of the two. The hair follicles may be visible on the outer side, together with any scars from when the animal was alive. The membrane can also show the pattern of the animal's vein network called the "veining" of the sheet.<ref name="Codex">{{Cite web |url=http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/project/conservation_physDesc.aspx |title='Recording the physical features of Codex Sinaiticus'. ''Codex Sinaiticus'', in partnership with the British Library |access-date=2012-04-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120501201624/http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/project/conservation_physDesc.aspx |archive-date=2012-05-01 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The makers remove any remaining hair ("scudding") and dry the skin by attaching it to a frame (a "herse").<ref name="ClemensGraham"/>{{rp|p=11}} They attach the skin at points around the edge with cords and wrap the part next to these points around a pebble (a "pippin").<ref name="ClemensGraham"/>{{rp|p=11}} They then use a crescent shaped knife, (a "lunarium" or "lunellum"), to clean off any remaining hairs.

The makers thoroughly clean the skin and process it into sheets once it is completely dry. They can extract many sheets from the piece of skin. The number of sheets depends on the size of the skin and the required length and breadth of each individual sheet. For example, the average calfskin could provide roughly three and a half medium sheets of writing material. The makers can double it when they fold the skin into two conjoined leaves, also known as a bifolium. Historians have found evidence of manuscripts where the scribe wrote down the medieval instructions now followed by modern membrane makers.<ref name="daniel">Thompson, Daniel. "Medieval Parchment-Making". The Library 16, no. 4 (1935).</ref> The makers rubbed them with a round, flat object ("pouncing") to ensure that the ink would adhere to the surface.<ref name="Codex"/> Even so, some types of ink would gradually flake off as the membrane was folded, rolled, or rubbed.{{cn|date=May 2025}}

==Manuscripts==
[[File:Treatises On Natural Science, Philosophy, And Mathematics - Planets.jpg|thumb|right|225px|''A Volume Of Treatises on Natural Science, Philosophy, and Mathematics'' (1300) Ink on vellum.]]

===Preparing manuscripts===
Once the vellum is prepared, traditionally a [[paper quire|quire]] is formed of a group of several sheets. Raymond Clemens and Timothy Graham point out, in their ''Introduction to Manuscript Studies'', that "the quire was the scribe's basic writing unit throughout the Middle Ages".<ref name="ClemensGraham"/>{{rp|p=14}} Guidelines are then made on the membrane. They note {{"'}}pricking' is the process of making holes in a sheet of parchment (or membrane) in preparation of its ruling. The lines were then made by ruling between the prick marks&nbsp;...The process of entering ruled lines on the page to serve as a guide for entering text. Most manuscripts were ruled with horizontal lines that served as the baselines on which the text was entered and with vertical bounding lines that marked the boundaries of the columns".<ref name="ClemensGraham"/>{{rp|pp=15–17}}

===Usage===
Most of the finer sort of medieval manuscripts, whether [[illuminated manuscript|illuminated]] or not, were written on vellum. Some [[Gandhāran Buddhist texts]] were written on vellum, and all [[Sifrei Torah]] (Hebrew: ספר תורה Sefer Torah; plural: ספרי תורה, Sifrei Torah) are written on [[kosher]] [[klaf]] or vellum.

A quarter of the 180-copy edition of [[Johannes Gutenberg]]'s first [[Gutenberg Bible|Bible]] printed in 1455 with [[movable type]] was also printed on vellum, presumably because his market expected this for a high-quality book. Paper was used for most book-printing, as it was cheaper and easier to process through a [[printing press]] and to [[bookbinding|bind]]. The twelfth-century [[Winchester Bible]] was also written on approximately 250 calfskins.

In art, vellum was used for paintings, especially if they needed to be sent long distances, before [[canvas]] became widely used in about 1500, and continued to be used for drawings, and [[watercolour]]s. [[Old master print]]s were sometimes printed on vellum, especially for presentation copies, until at least the seventeenth century.

[[Limp vellum]] or limp-parchment bindings were used frequently in the 16th and 17th centuries, and were sometimes [[gilding|gilt]] but were also often not [[embellishment|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 1,000 years—for example, [[Pastoral Care (Troyes, Bibliothèque Municipale, MS 504)|''Pastoral Care'' (Troyes, Bibliothèque Municipale, MS 504)]], dates from about 600 and is in excellent condition—animal vellum can be far more durable than paper. For this reason, many important documents are written on animal vellum, such as diplomas. Referring to a diploma as a "sheepskin" alludes to the time when diplomas were written on vellum made from animal hides.

===Modern usage===
British [[Act of Parliament|Acts of Parliament]] are still printed on vellum for archival purposes,<ref>{{cite news |title=Goat skin tradition wins the day |work=[[BBC News Online]] |date=1999-11-02 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/502342.stm |access-date=2016-02-11 |quote=Acts of Parliament dating back to 1497 recorded on vellum are currently held in the House of Lords Public Record Office |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080409112147/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/502342.stm |archive-date=2008-04-09 |url-status=live}}</ref> as are those of the [[Republic of Ireland]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?fn=%2Fdocuments%2FFAQ%2Fdocument1.htm |title=Frequently Asked Questions about the Houses of the Oireachtas – Tithe an Oireachtais |website=[[Oireachtas]] |access-date=2016-02-11 |quote=Once a Bill has been passed by both Houses, the Taoiseach presents a vellum copy of the Bill, prepared in the Office of the Houses of the Oireachtas to the President for signature and promulgation as law. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120328122949/http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?fn=%2Fdocuments%2FFAQ%2Fdocument1.htm |archive-date=2012-03-28 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In February 2016, the UK [[House of Lords]] announced that legislation would be printed on [[archival paper]] instead of the traditional vellum from April 2016.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hughes |first=Laura |title=Thousand year old tradition of printing Britain's laws on vellum has been scrapped to save just £80,000 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=2016-02-09 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/12149181/Thousand-year-old-tradition-of-printing-Britains-laws-on-vellum-has-been-scrapped-to-save-just-80000.html |access-date=2016-02-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160212064333/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/12149181/Thousand-year-old-tradition-of-printing-Britains-laws-on-vellum-has-been-scrapped-to-save-just-80000.html |archive-date=2016-02-12 |url-status=live}}</ref> However, [[Minister for the Cabinet Office|Cabinet Office Minister]] [[Matthew Hancock]] intervened by agreeing to fund the continued use of vellum from the [[Cabinet Office]] budget.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hughes |first=Laura |title=Vellum should be saved in a bid to 'safeguard our great traditions', says minister |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=2016-02-14 |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/12149181/Thousand-year-old-tradition-of-printing-Britains-laws-on-vellum-has-been-scrapped-to-save-just-80000.html |access-date=2016-02-15 |quote=Mr Hancock told The Daily Telegraph: 'Recording our laws on vellum is a millennium long tradition, and surprisingly cost effective. While the world around us constantly changes, we should safeguard some of our great traditions and not let the use of vellum die out.' |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160213064306/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/12149181/Thousand-year-old-tradition-of-printing-Britains-laws-on-vellum-has-been-scrapped-to-save-just-80000.html |archive-date=2016-02-13 |url-status=live}}</ref> On 2017, the House of Commons Commission agreed that it would provide front and back vellum covers for record copies of Acts.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vellum: printing record copies of public Acts |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7451/ |publisher=[[House of Commons]] Library |access-date=12 March 2021 |date=15 August 2018}}</ref>

Today, because of low demand and complicated manufacturing process, animal vellum is expensive and hard to find.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nowhere to hide: the value of vellum |url=https://www.iclr.co.uk/knowledge/legislation/nowhere-to-hide-the-value-of-vellum/ |access-date=2023-11-08 |website=ICLR |language=en-GB}}</ref> The only UK company still producing traditional parchment and vellum is William Cowley (established 1870), which is based in [[Newport Pagnell]], [[Buckinghamshire]]. A modern imitation is made 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. Some brands of [[writing paper]] and other sorts of paper use the term "vellum" to suggest quality.

Vellum is still used for Jewish scrolls, of the [[Torah]] in particular, for luxury [[bookbinding]], memorial books, and for various documents in [[calligraphy]]. It is also used on instruments such as the [[banjo]] and the [[bodhran]], although synthetic skins are available for these instruments and have become more commonly used.

The [[Catholic Church]] still issues its [[Decree|decrees]] and [[Diploma|diplomas]] for its officials on vellum.

==Paper vellum==
Modern imitation vellum is made from plasticized [[Cotton paper|rag cotton]] or fibers from interior [[tree bark]]. Terms include: paper vellum, Japanese vellum, and vegetable vellum.<ref name=":2"/><ref name=":1"/> Paper vellum is usually translucent and its various [[paper size|sizes]] are often used in applications where tracing is required, such as [[architectural plan]]s. Its dimensions are more stable than a [[linen]] or paper sheet, which is frequently critical in the development of large scaled drawings such as [[blueprint]]s. Paper vellum has also become extremely important in hand or chemical reproduction technology for dissemination of plan copies. Like a high-quality traditional vellum, paper vellum could be produced thin enough to be virtually [[transparency and translucency|transparent]] to strong light, enabling a source drawing to be used directly in the reproduction of field-used drawings.<ref>Drafting, 60–61; Yee, Rendow, ''Architectural Drawing: A Visual Compendium of Types and Methods'', 4th ed., 2012, John Wiley & Sons, {{ISBN|9781118310441}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=hphgl8Tu1HEC&pg=PT1532 google]</ref>

==Preservation==
Vellum is ideally stored in a stable environment with constant temperature and 30%&nbsp;(±&nbsp;5%) [[relative humidity]]. If vellum is stored in an environment with less than 11% relative humidity, it becomes fragile, and vulnerable to [[mechanical stress]]es. However, if it is stored in an environment with greater than 40% relative humidity, it becomes vulnerable to [[gelation]] and to [[mold (fungus)|mould]] or [[fungus]] growth.<ref>Eric F. Hansen and Steve N. Lee, "The Effects of Relative Humidity on Some Physical Properties of Modern Vellum: Implications for the Optimum Relative Humidity for the Display and Storage of Parchment", ''The Book and Paper Group Annual'' (1991).</ref> The optimal relative humidity for proper storage of vellum does not overlap that of paper, which poses a challenge for libraries.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parchment/Vellum: Cold Storage – Research Projects – Preservation Science (Preservation, Library of Congress) |url=https://www.loc.gov/preservation/scientists/projects/par_cold.html |access-date=2022-03-19 |website=www.loc.gov}}</ref> The optimal temperature for the keeping of vellum is approximately {{convert|20|C|F|||sigfig=2}}.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tips on Caring for Works on Parchment |url=https://www.iowaconserveandpreserve.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Parchment_Tip-Sheet-for-Preservation-final.pdf |access-date=2023-04-01 |website=Iowa Conservation And Preservation Consortium}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[History of hide materials]]
* [[Calfskin]]
* [[Drafting film]]
* [[Parchment]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Hepler |first1=Dana J. |last2=Wallach |first2=Paul Ross |last3=Hepler |first3=Donald |title=Drafting and Design for Architecture & Construction |edition=9th |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1111128135 |date=2012}}
* {{cite journal |last=Hingley |first=Mark |title=Success in the Treatment of Parchment and Vellum using a Suction Table |journal=Journal of the Society of Archivists |volume=22 |issue=1 |year=2001 |pages=71–77 |doi=10.1080/00379810120037513 |s2cid=110087014}}
* {{cite journal |last=Ustick |first=W. Lee |title='Parchment' and 'vellum' |journal=The Library |series=4th ser. |volume=16 |issue=4 |year=1936 |pages=439–443 |doi=10.1093/library/s4-XVI.4.439}}
* {{cite book |last=Lyons |first=Martyn |title=Books a Living History |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2011 |pages=22, 43, 57 |isbn=978-0-500-29115-3}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[http://classes.bnf.fr/phebus/explo/index3b.htm On-line demonstration of the preparation of vellum from the BNF, Paris]—text in French, but mostly visual.
<!-- *[http://www.infosrvr.nuk.uni-lj.si/jana/ICOMd/17RYallop.pdf Contains advice on cleaning of vellum] -->

{{Writing}}
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[[Category:Book design]]
[[Category:Calligraphy]]
[[Category:Hides (skin)]]
[[Category:Writing media]]