Inside the Scriptorium 2: Writing and Illuminating DVD : Writing and Illuminating

This video focuses on handwriting and the art of illumination in the Middle Ages.

It had an informative introduction and voiceover by Bernard J Muir, and includes a demonstration and description of the various stages involved in illuminating a large initial and in making a pen from a quill.

The film includes fine close-ups of the illuminator at work and of scribes writing a variety of medieval scripts.

There is also a segment showing a scribe incising text onto a wax tablet.

As with the Scriptorium 1 DVD, a bonus computer disc of supplementary resources is included: it contains film sequences demonstrating the making of inks and paints, an illustrated glossary of technical terms, a gallery of dozens of original images by award-winning photographer David Paul, and a number of brief illustrated essays on aspects of codicology and paleography.

There is also a recipe book derived from medieval manuscript sources illustrating the different ways in which different colours were produced, and a PowerPoint(TM) presentation on the development of Western European handwriting.

The medieval and Renaissance background music is performed by Ruth Wilkinson on a variety of instruments.