| Description |
1 online resource (xiii, 270 pages) : 103 illustrations (some color), color maps |
| Series |
ACLS Humanities E-Book
|
| Contents |
1. The invention of paper -- Clay tablets and papyrus rolls -- Wooden tablets and parchment codices -- Bamboo strips and silk cloth -- The invention of paper -- The diffusion of paper -- The introduction of paper in the Islamic lands -- 2. The spread of papermaking across the Islamic lands -- Iraq -- Syria -- Iran and Central Asia -- Egypt -- The Maghrib (North Africa and Spain) -- 3. Paper and books -- The Koran and oral culture -- Written Arabic -- An explosion of books -- Collections and libraries -- A culture of writing -- ch. 4. Paper and systems of notation -- Mathematics -- Commerce -- Cartography -- Music, genealogy, and battle plans -- 5. Paper and the visual arts -- Before the thirteenth century -- From the thirteenth century -- 6. The transfer of paper and papermaking to Christian Europe -- Byzantium -- Spain -- Italy -- Europe north of the Alps -- 7. Paper after print |
| Summary |
"Like the printing press, typewriter, and computer, paper has been a crucial agent for the dissemination of information. This ... book presents an important new chapter in paper's history: how its use in Islamic lands during the Middle Ages influenced almost every aspect of medieval life. Focusing on the spread of paper from the early eighth century, when Muslims in West Asia acquired Chinese knowledge of paper and papermaking, to five centuries later, when they transmitted this knowledge to Christians in Spain and Sicily, the book reveals how paper utterly transformed the passing of knowledge and served as a bridge between cultures. Jonathan Bloom traces the earliest history of paper--how it was invented in China over 2,000 years ago, how it entered the Islamic lands of West Asia and North Africa, and how it spread to northern Europe. He explores the impact of paper on the development of writing, books, mathematics, music, art, architecture, and even cooking. And he discusses why Europe was so quick to adopt paper from the Islamic lands and why the Islamic lands were so slow to accept printing in return"--Publisher's description |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 249-261) and index |
| Notes |
English |
|
Description based on print record and online resource (A&AePortal, viewed on November 13, 2020) |
| Subject |
Paper -- Middle East -- History
|
|
Paper -- History
|
|
Paper -- history
|
|
Paper
|
|
Middle East
|
| Genre/Form |
History
|
| Form |
Electronic book
|
| Author |
Yale University Press, publisher.
|
| LC no. |
2001001526 |
| ISBN |
9780300257731 |
|
0300257732 |
|
0300089554 |
|
9780300089554 |
|
