paleographers
Ancient writing scholars
Paleographers are specialists in paleography—the study and deciphering of historical handwriting and manuscripts.
They analyze ancient and medieval documents, interpreting scripts that have long fallen out of use: The paleographers determined the manuscript dated to the twelfth century.
The skill is essential for historians, archivists, and anyone working with primary sources from before the era of print.
Handwritten or typed originals
- deciphermentInterpreting unknown scripts
- scribesProfessional document copiers
- handwritingManual letter formation
- archivesStored historical documents
medieval · parchment · vellum · scholars · research · analysis · transcription · dating
Bound handwritten volumes
- scrollsRolled written records
- illuminatedMade visible by light
- palimpsestsManuscripts with erased underlayers
- foliosNumbered manuscript pages
incunabula · marginalia · rubrics · minuscule · uncial · cursive · Caroline · insular
Keepers of historical documents
- librariansCollection curators at lending institutions
- historiansScholars of the past
- cataloguersThose who organize inventories
- editorsContent revisers and correctors
consultants · forensic experts · curators · academics · authenticators · specialists · researchers · conservators
Degree of visual enlargement
- ultraviolet lightRadiation past violet
- digitizationAnalog-to-electronic transformation
- facsimilesExact copies of something
- databasesOrganized electronic information collections
reference works · photography · measurement · dating techniques · chemical analysis · spectroscopy · microscopes · catalogs
manuscripts
Handwritten or typed originals
- deciphermentInterpreting unknown scripts
- scribesProfessional document copiers
- handwritingManual letter formation
archives · medieval · parchment · vellum · scholars · research · analysis · transcription · dating · authentication
codices
Bound handwritten volumes
- scrollsRolled written records
- illuminatedMade visible by light
- palimpsestsManuscripts with erased underlayers
folios · incunabula · marginalia · rubrics · minuscule · uncial · cursive · Caroline · insular · ligatures
archivists
Keepers of historical documents
- librariansCollection curators at lending institutions
- historiansScholars of the past
- cataloguersThose who organize inventories
editors · consultants · forensic experts · curators · academics · authenticators · specialists · researchers · conservators · diplomats
magnification
Degree of visual enlargement
- ultraviolet lightRadiation past violet
- digitizationAnalog-to-electronic transformation
- facsimilesExact copies of something
databases · reference works · photography · measurement · dating techniques · chemical analysis · spectroscopy · microscopes · catalogs
paleographersoral historians
Recorders of spoken testimony
ethnomusicologists · folklorists · archaeologists · numismatists · iconographers