View source for Vellum

'''Vellum''' is a material made from the skin of [[cow|calves]] that was used in [[period]] as a writing material. It is the fact that calf skin is used that differentiates it from [[parchment]]. It gets its name from the [[Latin]] word ''vitulus'', meaning calf.

In order to create vellum the calf skin is cleaned and stretched out on a frame. The skin is alternately wetted, scraped with a knife and then dried until the skin is of the desired thickness. Occasionally [[pumice]] and then [[chalk]] would be rubbed into the vellum to finish it.

== Internal Links==
''See also:''
* [[Manuscript]]s

== External Links ==
* [http://moas.atlantia.sca.org/wsnlinks/index.php?action=displaycat&catid=1255 Atlantian A&S Links: Vellum]

[[category:materials (medieval)]]