Note 8 — PART I WRITING ILLUMINATING CHAPTER I THE DEVELOPMENT OF WRITING

It is possible that their forms were influenced by the use of the brush in painting up public notices and the like. The introduction of the use of vellum—a perfect writing material—in the making of books, led to such a great advance in the formality and finish of the book-hands (especially of the Uncial character) that, practically, it may be said to mark the beginning of penmanship as a “fine” art. This change may be assigned to any time between the first and the third centuries (palæographical dates before the fifth century must generally be regarded as approximate).