Scribal Methods & Materials

Dr. Daniel B. Wallace of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM) talks about the nature of materials used in New Testament manuscripts. The ink used on manuscripts varied with the surface being written on, and in later manuscripts ink became more important in the artistic adornment of the text.

Many do not know that there has been a development of writing instruments used throughout the history of the transmission of the New Testament. Dr. Daniel B. Wallace of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM) traces the development of writing instruments from the humble origins of reed pens all the way to the history changing creation of the printing press.

The earliest material used to record the New Testament on was papyri. Papyrus fragments are most often the earliest New Testament manuscripts available. This makes these the closest documents to the original documents of the New Testament. In this video, Dr. Daniel B. Wallace discusses the composition, use, and cataloging of papyrus fragments.

An historical account of the use of parchment in the history of the transmission of the New Testament is given by Dr. Daniel B. Wallace of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM).  In this video, Dr. Wallace surveys the reasons for the use of parchment instead of papyri and the methods by which parchment came to be from animal skins.  Dr. Wallace also discusses interesting uses of parchment that rendered the creation of palimpsests of which a famous manuscript known as Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus belongs.

The use of paper as a writing material in the ancient world was created first by the Arabs. It was later traded by Arabian tradesmen into a European context. Paper was used as a material upon which the New Testament was transmitted. Paper manuscripts are much later in date than either papyrus or parchment. In this video, Dr. Daniel B. Wallace of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM) describes the history of the use of paper in the transmission of the New Testament.