Page 20 - All About History 55 - 2017 UK

The WriTTen Word

Day in the life

SCRIPTORIUM MONK

THE SCRIBES WHO KEPT LEARNING ALIVE
ENDURED A PUNISHING DAILY ROUTINE

AN ENGLISH MONASTERY, 14TH CENTURY

Monastic life was organised around the eight canonical offices
spread across the day when members of the community came
together in chapel to chant, sing and pray. In between these
devotions, scribes would spend six or more hours at work in the
scriptorium. The copying of ancient texts and theological works
that took place here represented one of the crucial intellectual
endeavours of the Medieval era. With goose quills in their
hands and water clocks keeping time, the monks preserved
the legacy of the past and laid the foundations for much
of what followed in the Western cultural tradition.
MORNING PRAYER

A monastery’s precise schedule
changed with the seasons. The
day’s first major service, Lauds,
would take place just after
sunrise. Afterwards, monks
would make for the cloister: a
place for quiet contemplation,
private prayer and lectio
divina, or devotional reading.
This was also where they would
wash, shave and perhaps
discuss tasks for the day ahead. Monks prayed frequently
throughout the day
OFF TO WORK

After the next act of worship, it was time for work.
While other monks cared for the land and tended
the kitchen, scribes copied ancient texts out by
hand. A single book could take weeks to reproduce
and the intricate work damaged their eyesight. The
most talented scribes would be entrusted with the
delicate tasks of ‘illumination’, adding decorative
borders and hand-drawn illustrations to the books.

CHAPTER MEETING

The timing and frequency of such meetings varied,
but matters of discipline were apt to arise. Beyond
the scratching of quills and the rubbing of pumice
stones to smooth out parchment, silence was the
goal in many scriptoriums. Scribes were expected
to use hand signals when they required help or
materials. This rule was sometimes more
honoured in the breach.
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