Books

A book is a technology for holding a mind still long enough to copy it. For most of the story that meant an animal skin, a quill and a room of monks working through a winter to produce one volume. Then a goldsmith in Mainz worked out how to cast reusable letters in metal, not the first movable type on earth, since China and Korea had got there centuries before, but the first system that scaled, and the price of a book collapsed. What followed was almost everything: mass literacy, the newspaper, the novel, the pamphlet war, and a permanent argument about who gets to read what. Books have been chained to desks, indexed as forbidden, burned in public squares by governments confident they were on the right side, and hidden under floorboards by people who disagreed. They have also been the most durable storage medium anyone has built: a codex written in the year 800 is still readable, which is more than can be said for a floppy disk from 1994. This archive is the whole of it, the making, the printing, the libraries, the trade, the banning, the individual books that moved something, and the strange private act of reading itself.

A chronological documentary of 1,513 moments spanning 332 BC–2026 on Loreline.

Curated by Olivier · last updated 2026-08-22

Eras

Papyrus & Scrolls, Before the page there was the roll. Egyptian papyrus made from a river reed, the Dead Sea Scrolls sealed in jars, the carbonised Herculaneum library now being read by particle accelerator and machine learning, and the slow shift from the scroll to the bound codex that changed how anyone could look something up.
Scribes, The people who made the marks, and what they made them with. Copyists at the desk, cuneiform pressed into wet clay, the reed and the quill, oak-gall ink and lapis ground into ultramarine, and the colophons where an exhausted monk complains in the margin about his cold hands.
Parchment & Paper, The substrate. Animal skin scraped, stretched and limed into vellum; paper travelling from Han China through Samarkand and Baghdad to Fabriano and then everywhere; rag pulp, watermarks, the mill, and the acid-paper disaster that is quietly destroying most of what was printed after 1850.
Manuscripts, Books written entirely by hand, and the objects that survived. Domesday, Magna Carta, the great codices, palimpsests where an earlier text was scraped off and read back centuries later, and the libraries and collectors who kept them intact.
Illuminated Manuscripts, Gold leaf, miniature painting and the decorated initial. The Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels, books of hours made for people who could not read the Latin in them, bestiaries, and the marginalia, the knights fighting snails, the rabbits with trumpets.
Islamic Manuscripts, Calligraphy as the highest art form. Kufic and naskh, the Qur'an as an object, Persian and Mughal painting, the paper mills of Baghdad, the translation movement in the House of Wisdom, and the manuscript libraries of Fez, Cairo and Timbuktu.
World Manuscripts, Hebrew, Armenian, Syriac, Ethiopian and Coptic books; Mesoamerican codices in bark paper and deerskin, most of them burned; the Timbuktu manuscripts smuggled out of Mali in rice sacks in 2012; and the writing traditions that never entered the European story at all.
Asian Books, China, Japan, Korea and the wider region, where printing is older than Gutenberg by centuries. Bamboo slips, the Diamond Sutra of 868 as the oldest dated printed book, Korean movable metal type in 1377, the Tripitaka Koreana's 81,000 blocks, and the Japanese and Chinese book trades.
Woodblock, Printing from a carved surface. East Asian woodblock and the European woodcut, engraving, etching and lithography, the image half of the book, and the technique that put pictures into print long before photography.
Gutenberg, Mainz, around 1450: a goldsmith, a punch, a matrix, a hand mould, an oil-based ink and a converted press. The 42-line Bible, the lawsuit with Fust that took the business away from him, and the argument about what he actually invented and what he borrowed.
Printing, The press and what it did. Incunabula, Aldus Manutius and the pocket book, Caxton in Westminster, Plantin in Antwerp, the hand press, the iron press, steam, stereotype, the Linotype, offset, and the print shop as the noisiest room in town.
Typography, Letterforms and the people who cut them. Roman and italic, Garamond, Baskerville, Bodoni, Caslon, blackletter, the punchcutter's hand, Gill and Zapf and Frutiger, the Swiss grid, phototypesetting and the leap to digital type.
Bookbinding, Turning sheets into a book. Sewing, the gathering and the signature, boards and leather and gold tooling, the fore-edge painting hidden until you fan the pages, the treasure binding in metal and jewels, and the conservators repairing all of it now.
Bibles, The most printed book there is. The Vulgate, the Gutenberg Bible, Tyndale burned for translating it, Luther's German, the King James, the Geneva Bible and its footnotes, mass distribution by the Bible societies, and the translation work still going on in hundreds of languages.
Libraries, Rooms full of books and how they were organised. Alexandria and what actually happened to it, the reading room, the card catalogue, Dewey and the Library of Congress classification, the stacks, and the fight over what a library is for now.
Monastery Libraries, The chained library and the scriptorium. St Gallen, Admont, Strahov, Melk, Hereford, the Joanina at Coimbra, the Escorial, the rooms where books were copied, kept and read for a thousand years, and which mostly still look exactly as they did.
National Libraries, The great deposit collections. The British Library, the Bibliothèque nationale, the Library of Congress, the Vatican Library, and the buildings, budgets, legal-deposit rules and cyberattacks that keep them going or nearly stop them.
Librarians, The job. Reference work, cataloguing, prison and hospital libraries, bookmobiles and camel libraries, the ALA, funding fights, and the librarians who refused to hand over borrowing records.
Archives, The record that was never meant to be published. Registries, national archives, the disaster of a burned or bombed archive, digitisation programmes, provenance and repatriation, and how you find one document among forty million.
Publishing, The trade. The publisher, the editor, the agent, the advance, the imprint, paperback revolutions, Penguin, the airport bestseller, the conglomerate merger, self-publishing, and how a manuscript becomes a product.
Bookshops, Where books are sold. The independent, the second-hand shop, Shakespeare and Company, the chain, the remainder table, the book fair, and the shops that closed and the ones that somehow did not.
Readers, The other half of the act. Reading aloud, reading silently, marginalia, commonplace books, book clubs, the novel-reading panic, audiobooks, Braille and talking books, and what the eye and brain actually do on a page.
Literacy, Learning to read, and who was allowed to. Hornbooks and primers, mass schooling, literacy campaigns, the alphabet wars and phonics, adult literacy work, and the parts of the world where the fight is still on.
Censorship, Books stopped by authority. The Index of Forbidden Books, obscenity trials from Ulysses to Lady Chatterley, samizdat typed on onionskin, the fatwa against Rushdie, and state censors from Franco's Spain to the present.
Book Bans, The modern wave. School-board removals and district lists, the titles pulled most often, the parents and librarians on both sides of it, lawsuits, and the counts published each year by the ALA and PEN.
Book Burning, Fire as an argument. The Nazi bonfires of 1933, the National and University Library of Bosnia in 1992, the Jaffna library in 1981, Louvain twice in two wars, and the deliberate destruction of a written culture as a tactic.
Encyclopedias, The attempt to hold everything. Pliny, the Chinese leishu, Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopédie as a political act, the Britannica and its door-to-door salesmen, Brockhaus, and Wikipedia, the largest of them all, written by nobody in particular.
Landmark Books, Individual titles that changed something, and the copies of them that survive. The First Folio, Newton's Principia, Audubon's double elephant folio, and the rare-book world of auctions, forgeries and thefts that grew up around such objects.
Children's Books, The books people remember longest. Picture books and the illustrator's craft, primers and fairy tales, Carroll and Sendak and Blyton, board books, banned children's titles, and the reading that decides whether anyone becomes a reader at all.

c. 332 BC - Book of the Dead of the Priest of Horus, Imhotep (Imuthes). Papyrus, funerary, Book of the Dead, Imouthes, Imhotep, Imuthes in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Egyptian Art). Papyrus, ink. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, ca. 332–200 BCE.
0150 - Muziris Papyrus P.Vindob. G 40822 verso Austrian National Library. Verso side of the Muziris Papyrus (P.Vindob. G 40822), a Greek papyrus document of the mid-2nd century CE preserved in the Austrian National Library. The verso contains an account of Indian cargo from the ship Hermapollon, including Gangetic nard.
0350 - Codex Sinaiticus Paralipomenon 9,27-10,11. Codex Sinaiticus, the fourth-century Greek Bible codex, one of the oldest substantially complete Christian books.
0350 - Codex Ink. Codex Sinaiticus, the fourth-century Greek Bible codex, one of the oldest substantially complete Christian books.
0350 - Codex Sinaiticus Petropolitanus (title). Codex Sinaiticus, the fourth-century Greek Bible codex, one of the oldest substantially complete Christian books.
0350 - Codex Sinaiticus. Pagina, GD009896. Title Codex Sinaiticus. Pagina Series EuroPhot. Art history. 4th century. Artifact EuroPhot. Kunstgeschiedenis. 4de eeuw. Artefact Extent 1 glasdia; 100 x 85 mm. Slide Language Undetermined Typographical details glass slide(s) Additional info General note: Fotograaf onbekend General note: Toegevoegde informatie op dia Biographical or historical data: Oorspronkelijke locatie/Vindplaats: Egypte, Si
0800 - Qur'an Manuscript Folio. 9th century. ink, gold, and color on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, 800s-900s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
0800 - Qur'an Manuscript Folio: a second folio. Qur'an Manuscript Folio (verso). Iran or Iraq, Abbasid period, 9th, 10th century. ink, gold, and color on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, 800s, 900s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
0800 - Trinity College - Book of Kells. The Book of Kells, the insular Gospel manuscript of about 800 now at Trinity College Dublin.
0800 - Qur'an Manuscript Folio (recto); left side of bifolio. 9th century. gold, ink and colors on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, 800s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
0800 - Dublin Trinity College Library Long Room Book of Kells 1. The Book of Kells, the insular Gospel manuscript of about 800 now at Trinity College Dublin.
0800 - The book of Kells library interior 3. The Book of Kells, the insular Gospel manuscript of about 800 now at Trinity College Dublin.
0800 - Qur'an Manuscript Folio (verso), view 2. Qur'an Manuscript Folio. Iran or Iraq, Abbasid period, 800s, 900s. ink, gold, and color on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, 800s, 900s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
0830 - Bifolium Excised from a Carolingian Gradual. 9th century. gold and silver ink on purple parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 830–60. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
0850 - Diamond sutra. Frontispiece of a printed dated copy of the Diamond Sutra. Ink on paper: woodblock print. Or.8210/P.2
0850 - E-codices csg-0728 004 max. The earliest manuscript catalogue of the monastery of St. Gall from the middle of the 9th century, followed by a collection of important law texts (capitularies of Ansegis, Lex Salica, Lex Ribuaria). (smu)
0868 - Diamond Sutra - Exhibits on the ground floor of Himalayan Tibet Museum in Darjeeling 12. The Diamond Sutra, the Dunhuang copy of 868 is the earliest dated printed book to survive complete.
0868 - Himalayan Tibet Museum - Darjeeling - Diamond Sutra (1). The Diamond Sutra, the Dunhuang copy of 868 is the earliest dated printed book to survive complete.
0868 - Tibetan Diamond Sutra. The Diamond Sutra, the Dunhuang copy of 868 is the earliest dated printed book to survive complete.
1000 - Gospel Book with Commentaries. 1000–1100. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1000 - Text, folio 110 (recto), from a Gospel Book with Commentaries. 1000–1100. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1000 - Text, folio 121 (verso), from a Gospel Book with Commentaries. 1000–1100. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1050 - Syriac manuscript 11 century liturgy - 2. A Syriac manuscript in the Aramaic script used by the Churches of the East.
1054 - Syriac Orthodox icon of Jesus Christ, St. Peter, and St. Paul. A Syriac manuscript in the Aramaic script used by the Churches of the East.
1069 - Funerary Papyrus of Tayuhenutmut (1894.180). Potent symbols, sacred words, and divine protection helped ancient Egyptians transition from the earthly realm to an eternal existence. Interactions between mortals and the gods were depicted on funerary objects including papyri, like this example made for temple singer Tayu-henut-Mut (“the mistress of [the goddess] Mut”). This papyrus shows Tayu-henut-Mut standing with raised hands before an offe
1077 - Papyrus with the Instruction of Amenemope. (1077-664 BC). It was discovered at Thebes, and was purchased by the British Museum through Wallis Budge in 1888.
1079 - Leaf from a Greek Psalter and New Testament. 1084. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1086 - Domesday Croydon Cheam. The Domesday Book, the 1086 survey of England ordered by William the Conqueror.
1086 - Selseydomesday. The Domesday Book, the 1086 survey of England ordered by William the Conqueror.
1086 - Domesday zinco Somerset Glastonbury. The Domesday Book, the 1086 survey of England ordered by William the Conqueror.
1086 - Plate XXIV 2 Domesday Book Guilford 1086. Terra Regis. In Wochinges Hundredo. In Gildeford habet Rex Willelmus 75 hagas in quibus manent 175 homines. Tempore Regis Edwardi reddebat 18 libras et 3 denarios. Modo appreciatur 30 libris et tamen reddit 32 libras. De supradictis hagis habet Rannulfus clericus tres hagas ubi manent sex homines, et inde liabet isdem Rannulfus sacam et socam, nisi commune geldum in villa venerit, undo nullus cv
1100 - Bilingual Syriac-New Persian psalter in Syriac script, Bulayik, 12th-13th century AD, paper - Ethnological Mus. A Syriac manuscript in the Aramaic script used by the Churches of the East.
1100 - Page from a Qur'an, Sura al-Nisa 4, verses 159–60. 1100s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1100 - Fragment of the Cairo Genizah - The Passover Haggadah, pages 3&4 plus ruler. A fragment from the Cairo Geniza, the storeroom of the Ben Ezra Synagogue that preserved roughly 400,000 discarded Jewish manuscript fragments.
1100 - Solomon Schechter studying the fragments of the Cairo Genizah, c. 1898. A fragment from the Cairo Geniza, the storeroom of the Ben Ezra Synagogue that preserved roughly 400,000 discarded Jewish manuscript fragments.
1100 - Double-Sided Leaf from a Qur'an. 1100s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1100 - Fragment of the Cairo Genizah - The Passover Haggadah, pages 1&2 plus ruler. A fragment from the Cairo Geniza, the storeroom of the Ben Ezra Synagogue that preserved roughly 400,000 discarded Jewish manuscript fragments.
1100 - Ephrem's Commentary on the Diatessaron. A Syriac manuscript in the Aramaic script used by the Churches of the East.
1100 - Meta-Discourse on the Teachings from the Treasury (Abidharmakosha-Bhashya). ). Japan, Heian period (794–1185). handscroll; gold and silver on indigo-dyed paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1100s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1100 - Folio from a Qur'an. (1037–1194). ink, gold, and colors on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1100s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1143 - Title Page of St. Gregory's "Moralia": Job Visited by His Three Friends (above) and Gregory the Great and His. (below). Switzerland, Monastery of Engelberg, 12th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1143–1178. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1150 - Aethicus, Handschrift, Benediktinerstift Admont, Stiftsbibliothek, Fragm. C 472 (Ende des Werks und Alphabet). Admont, Benedictine Abbey, Fragment C 472 (formerly Cod. 472, fol. 1f/2r): This fragment was embedded for centuries in Codex 472 of the Benedictine Abbey of Admont, a Sedulius manuscript from the 12th century. During the restoration of the binding in 1952, it was removed. Winfried Stelzer identified the fragment as an early version of the Cosmography of Aethicus, dating to the late 9th century. He
1168 - T-S NS 163.57. A fragment from the Cairo Geniza, the storeroom of the Ben Ezra Synagogue that preserved roughly 400,000 discarded Jewish manuscript fragments.
1200 - Lalitwistra Waipulya Sutra. A Buddhist sutra manuscript or printed text, the copying of sutras was itself a devotional act. Low-resolution scan retained as scarce primary material.
1200 - SMT D119 Facsimile of f plate 21 of the manuscript Troano. Maya codex material. Only four pre-conquest Maya codices survive; much of what circulates is nineteenth-century facsimile plates.
1200 - 4Q41 2. A Hebrew biblical manuscript or scroll, the text tradition copied by hand for two millennia.
1200 - Dharmakīrtisāgara.. A Buddhist sutra manuscript or printed text, the copying of sutras was itself a devotional act. Low-resolution scan retained as scarce primary material.
1200 - Entire Tanakh scroll set. A Hebrew biblical manuscript or scroll, the text tradition copied by hand for two millennia.
1200 - Detail of Maya Codex - Museum of Anthropology - Mexico City - Mexico. Maya codex material. Only four pre-conquest Maya codices survive; much of what circulates is nineteenth-century facsimile plates.
1200 - GYANTSE Bibliotheque. A Buddhist sutra manuscript or printed text, the copying of sutras was itself a devotional act.
1200 - CodexPages9 17. The Dresden Codex, the best preserved of the four surviving Maya codices, containing astronomical and calendrical tables.
1200 - SMT D111 Facsimile of plate 20 of the manuscript Troano. Maya codex material. Only four pre-conquest Maya codices survive; much of what circulates is nineteenth-century facsimile plates.
1200 - MA D363 Maya animals hunted. Maya codex material. Only four pre-conquest Maya codices survive; much of what circulates is nineteenth-century facsimile plates.
1200 - Dresden Codex f8461796. The Dresden Codex, the best preserved of the four surviving Maya codices, containing astronomical and calendrical tables.
1200 - Isaiah scroll. A Hebrew biblical manuscript or scroll, the text tradition copied by hand for two millennia.
1200 - KellsFol027v4Evang. Image of Folio 27v, with the four evangelist symbols from the en:Book of Kells, a 1200 year old book. Scanned from: Meehan, Bernard; The Book of Kells': an illustrated introduction to the manuscript in Trinity College Dublin. London: Thames and Hudson, 1994. p. 8.
1215 - Magna Carta Exhibition. Magna Carta, sealed at Runnymede in 1215; several original engrossments and many later facsimiles survive.
1215 - Magna Carta deposited in Congressional Library for duration of war. Washington, D.C., Nov. 28. The most cheris. Magna Carta, sealed at Runnymede in 1215; several original engrossments and many later facsimiles survive.
1215 - Magna Carta Lincoln Castle 01. Magna Carta, sealed at Runnymede in 1215; several original engrossments and many later facsimiles survive.
1220 - Initial I: Entwined Beast and Serpent: Leaf from a Bible (2 of 2 Excised Leaves). ). England, Glastonbury(?), 13th century. tempera and ink on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1225–50. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1230 - Bifolia with Scenes from the Life of Christ. (Diocese of Hildesheim), Braunschweig(?), 13th century. tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1230–1240. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1250-06-15 - Tangut Diamond Sutra frontispiece. Initial illustration to a woodblock printed edition of the Tangut translation of the Diamond Sutra recovered from a stupa near the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang, now held at the Dunhuang Research Academy [G11·035].
1253-07-18 - Handwritten diamond sutra zhang jizhi song dynasty 1253. The Chinese calligrapher Zhang Jizhi (張即之, 1186–1266) made this handwritten edition of the Diamond Sutra (section depicted) on 18 July 1253 during the Song dynasty. The calligraphy is in the style of the regular script with elements of the running script. The transcription of sutras, a practice for which Zhang Jizhi was well-known, was considered an act of accumulating merit in Buddhism. The India
1256 - Poem by Wang Wei in the Cursive Script Style. (1127-1279). Album leaf; ink on silk. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1256. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1256 - Poem by Wang Wei in the Cursive Script Style - Song Lizong. Calligraphy in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Chinese Art). China, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1256.
1260 - Partial Leaf from a Latin Bible: Initial I[n principio] with the Marriage at Cana. 13th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1260–1270. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1265 - Miniature Excised from a Psalter: The Nativity. (?), 13th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1270. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1285 - Bifolium from a Bible: Initial E[t factum est] with Ezekiel. Manuscript in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1290.
1290 - Miniatures from a Manuscript of the Apocalypse. 1295. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1295 - Historiated Initial (O) Excised from an Antiphonary: The Donor, Gorus Fucci, Kneels before Christ. (?). ink, tempera, and gold on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1300–1350. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1295 - Bifolio from a Gradual: Initial (G) with Christ, the Virgin, and Apostles and Initial (O) (recto). ). Italy, Siena(?). Ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1300. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1295 - Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D: Massacre of the Innocents (1 of 2 Excised Leaves). ). Northeastern France or Flanders. ink, tempera and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1300–1330. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1300 - Libro el ekspozicio de Matenadaran 65. An Armenian illuminated manuscript, a tradition centred on the Gospel book and now largely held at the Matenadaran in Yerevan.
1300 - Libro el ekspozicio de Matenadaran 47. An Armenian illuminated manuscript, a tradition centred on the Gospel book and now largely held at the Matenadaran in Yerevan.
1300 - Portrait of St Mark from The Four Gospels Wellcome L0022867. An Armenian illuminated manuscript, a tradition centred on the Gospel book and now largely held at the Matenadaran in Yerevan.
1300 - Libro el ekspozicio de Matenadaran 74. An Armenian illuminated manuscript, a tradition centred on the Gospel book and now largely held at the Matenadaran in Yerevan.
1300 - Hebrew Bible Spain. A Hebrew biblical manuscript or scroll, the text tradition copied by hand for two millennia.
1300 - Avatamsaka Sutra No. 78. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Korean Art). Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1300s.
1300 - Libro el ekspozicio de Matenadaran 87. An Armenian illuminated manuscript, a tradition centred on the Gospel book and now largely held at the Matenadaran in Yerevan.
1300-06-15 - AM 45 fol.-27-0010v. Page 10v of AM 45 fol. (Fríssbók, Codex Frisianus), showing part of Haralds saga hins hárfagra
1300-06-15 - Moroccan Qur'an Manuscript, c. 1300 04. Qur'an Manuscript from Morocco/al-Andalus, c. 1300 held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Title:Section from a Qur'an Manuscript Date:ca. 1300 Geography:Attributed to Morocco or Southern Spain Medium:Ink, gold, and opaque watercolor on parchment Dimensions:7 15/16 x 7 9/16 in. (20.2 x 19.2 cm) Classification:Codices Credit Line:Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 2004 Accession Number:2004.90 htt
1301 - Leaf from a Book of Hours: Initial D: Flight into Egypt (2 of 2 Excised Leaves). ). Northern France or Flanders, early 14th Century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, early 1300s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1305 - "Isfandiyar's Third Course: He Slays a Dragon", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings). Folio from an illustrated manuscript in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, ca. 1330–40.
1315 - Peacock-shaped Hand Washing Device (recto); Text Page, Arabic Prose (verso). ). Syria, Damascus, Mamluk Period, 14th Century. opaque watercolor and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1315. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1320 - Leaf Excised from an Antiphonary: Initial Q with Saints Peter and Paul. 1325. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1325 - Leaf from a Missal: The Crucifixion (recto) and Text (verso). ). Bohemia. ink, tempera, and gold leaf on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1330–40. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1330 - Leaf from a Gradual: Historiated Initial R: The Resurrection (recto) and Initial D (verso). ). Italy, Naples. ink, tempera, and gold on parchment. Cleveland Museum of Art, mid-1300s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1340 - "Bizhan Slaughters the Wild Boars of Irman", Folio from a Shahnama (Book of Kings). Folio from an illustrated manuscript in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, dated 741 AH/1341 CE.
1341 - The Tale of the Twelve Faces. "Bizhan Addresses the Army": Illustration from the Firdausi Shahnama (recto); Th. "The Warriors Engage in Combat": Illustration from the Firdausi Shahnama (verso). Iran, Shiraz, Inju (Il-Khanid), 14th Century. opaque watercolor and ink on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1341. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograp
1350 - Zürich, Braginsky Collection, B93 page 32. A Hebrew illuminated manuscript, a marriage contract or festival scroll, from the Braginsky Collection.
1353-06-15 - A Qur'an scroll (tumar) commissioned for Ghiyath al-Din Sultan Muhammad ibn Sultan Eretna, signed Mubarakshah. 'ABDULLAH, EASTERN ANATOLIA, DATED AH 754/1353-54 AD Arabic manuscript on buff paper, the beginning with a series of alternated round and rectangular panels heavily and elegantly illuminated in gold, silver and polychrome and including religious invocations and names of God, flanked
1354 - Le livre de seyntz medicines f.67 r. (cropped). A portion of a page of Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster 's Le Livre de Seyntz Medicines '' showing the title.
1368 - Yu-hai (Ocean of Jade) woodblock bound volume. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Chinese Art). China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1368–1644.
1377 - Jikji pages. Two pages (pp. 4v, 5r ) of a 1377 manuscript of the Jikji, the oldest example of printing with metal movable type. Held at and digitized by the Département des Manuscrits at the Bibliothèque nationale de France
1399 - Hours of Charles the Noble, King of Navarre (1361-1425). Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1404.
1400 - Firma parlante marginale autografa di Paris Malmignati.. Handwritten marginal notes in a book or manuscript, the reader’s own traces left in the margin.
1400 - Gorgias marginalia 03. Clarke Plato. Handwritten marginal notes in a book or manuscript, the reader’s own traces left in the margin.
1400 - Phaidros marginalia 1. Clarke Plato. Handwritten marginal notes in a book or manuscript, the reader’s own traces left in the margin.
1400 - Gorgias marginalia 05. Clarke Plato. Handwritten marginal notes in a book or manuscript, the reader’s own traces left in the margin.
1400 - The Story of Hushang (recto), Illustration and text (Persian Prose) from Majmac al-Tavarikh (A Compendium of. ) of Hafiz-i Abru; Text Page, Persian Prose, (verso), from Majmac al-Tavarikh (A Compendium of Histories) of Hafiz-i Abru. Afghanistan, Herat, Timurid period (1370–1501). ink and opaque watercolor on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, early 1400s. This is a reproduction of the object
1400 - Hours of Charles the Noble, King of Navarre (1361-1425): fol. 11r, November. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1405.
1410 - Ellesmere Chaucer f. 138r. The Ellesmere manuscript of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, copied around 1400-1410 and now at the Huntington Library.
1410 - Ellesmere Chaucer f. 115v. The Ellesmere manuscript of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, copied around 1400-1410 and now at the Huntington Library.
1410 - Ellesmere Chaucer f. 133r (Physician's Tale). The Ellesmere manuscript of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, copied around 1400-1410 and now at the Huntington Library.
1410 - Pair of Bifolio from a Book of Hours: Adoration of the Magi and Coronation of the Virgin. 1415. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1415 - Leaf from a Gradual: Historiated Initial S[alve Sancta Parens] with Birth of the Virgin (recto) and Music (ver. ). Northern Italy, 15th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1420–50. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1415 - Book of Hours (Use of Paris) - The Bedford Master. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1420.
1420 - Voynich Manuscript (135). A page from the Voynich manuscript, an early fifteenth-century codex in an undeciphered script.

…1,333 further moments continue the chronology here. Full text archive: /loreline-text/books.md

1420 - DroseraVoynichManuscriptF56r. A page from the Voynich manuscript, an early fifteenth-century codex in an undeciphered script.
1420 - Mappa Voynich Monti Sibillini. A page from the Voynich manuscript, an early fifteenth-century codex in an undeciphered script.
1425 - Leaf Excised from the Tarleton Hours: Christ Carrying the Cross. 15th century. ink, tempera, silver, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1430. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1430 - Bifolio from a Book of Hours: The Crucifixion (recto), Text (verso). ). France (Angers, Nantes, or Poitiers). ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1435. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1435 - Leaf from a Missal: The Crucifixion (Frontispiece for the Canon of the Mass). ). North Netherlands, Augustinian Cloister of Agnietenberg, near Zwolle, 15th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1440–1450. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1435 - Book of Hours (Use of Metz) - France, Metz. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Metz. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1440.
1440 - Single Leaf from a Gospel Book with a Portrait of Saint Luke. (Ethiopia). ink and tempera on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1440–80. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1450-06-15 - Herodotus, Histories, with marginalia by Lorenzo Valla, Vat. gr. 122, fol. 41r und 122r. Herodotus, Histories. With marginalia by humanist Lorenzo Valla. Vatican library, Vat. gr. 122, fol. 41r und 122r.
1450 - Arithmetica boetij. - Upper cover (IA6659). Style: Knotwork/ropework|Panel design; Caption: Upper cover; Colour: Brown; Edge: Unspecified
1450 - Compendium Biblie quod et aureum alias Biblie Reportorium nuncupatur.-- - Upper cover (IA1422). Style: Unspecified; Caption: Upper cover; Colour: White / cream; Edge: Unspecified
1450 - fol. 1 recto- Psalterium.- -fol. 2 recto-- -B-Eatus vir q no abijt in consilio impiorum, etc. - Upper cover (I. Style: Panel design; Caption: Upper cover; Colour: Brown; Edge: Unspecified
1450 - Manipulus curatorum.- - Upper cover (IA2103). Style: Unspecified; Caption: Upper cover; Colour: White / cream; Edge: Unspecified
1450 - Quadragesimale doctoris illuminati F. de M. - Upper cover (IA22648). Style: Panel design; Caption: Upper cover; Colour: Brown; Edge: Unspecified
1454-06-15 - Gutenberg Bible - Gutenberg, Johann, 1397?-1468. Johann Gutenberg was born in Mainz, Germany, around 1400, the son of an aristocratic family with ties to the local metalworking industry. He lived in Strasbourg (in present-day France) for a time, where he carried out experiments with moveable metallic type made from a mold. By the mid-1450s, he had perfected a system of printing with moveable type that he used to create what became the world’s mo
1455 - Bifolio from a Book of Hours: Initial V with Floral Border (recto); Text (verso). ). Austria (? ) or Bohemia (?), 15th century. ink, tempera and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1460–1500. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1455 - Replica of gutenberg bible. The Gutenberg Bible of about 1455, the first substantial European book printed with movable type. Some frames photograph a facsimile on display.
1455 - Gutenbergbibel aus Rendsburg. The Gutenberg Bible of about 1455, the first substantial European book printed with movable type. Some frames photograph a facsimile on display.
1455 - Germania, biblia latina (bibbia di gutenberg), 1455-56 ca. (saint-omer, bibliothèque de l'agglomeration du pay. The Gutenberg Bible of about 1455, the first substantial European book printed with movable type. Some frames photograph a facsimile on display.
1456 - Gutenberg-bible - Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg. Commentary on Solomon's from Gutenberg's Latin bible, circa 1453 -1456.
1465 - Leaf from Jehan de Courcy's "Chronique Universelle": King Priam Meets Helen and Paris outside the Gates of Tro. 15th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1470. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1465 - Illuminated Folio (recto) from a Gulistan (Rose Garden) of Sa'di (c. 1213–1291). ). Afghanistan, Herat, Timurid period (1370–1501). Gum tempera, ink, gold, and silver on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1475–1500; border: c. 1550. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1465 - Book of Hours (Use of Rouen) - Master of the Geneva Latini. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Rouen. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1470.
1470 - Leaf from a Book of Hours: The Annunciation. (?). ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1470s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1475 - Left side of a double-page album folio: Outside a Royal Encampment (recto) and Calligraphy, Persian Verses (ve. ). Afghanistan or Iran, Timurid period (1370–1501). opaque watercolor, ink, and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1485. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1475 - Single Leaf from a Missal: The Crucifixion. 15th century. ink, tempera, and gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1480. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1475 - Left side of a double-page album folio: Outside a Royal Encampment (recto) and Calligraphy, Persian Verses (ve - Bihzad. Manuscript in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Afghanistan or Iran, Timurid period (1370–1501). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1485.
1493 - Liber Chronicarum (2022-12-06) 01. The Nuremberg Chronicle (Liber Chronicarum), printed by Anton Koberger in 1493, the most heavily illustrated book of the incunable period.
1495 - Leaf from a Book of Hours: Ape Hunting Wild Boars (recto) and Ape Fishing (verso). ). France, Paris or Rouen, 16th century. ink, tempera and liquid gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1500–1510. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1495 - Hours of Queen Isabella the Catholic, Queen of Spain. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). Flanders, Bruges and Ghent. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, c. 1500.
1499 - Anthology of Persian Poetry in Oblong Format (Safina). Non-illustrated manuscript in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Ink, watercolor, and gold on paper. Binding: leather. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, dated 905 AH/1499–1500 CE.
1510 - Printed Book of Hours (Use of Rome). Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1510.
1510 - Printed Book of Hours (Use of Rome): fol. 66v, Text. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1510.
1510 - Printed Book of Hours (Use of Rome): fol. 95v, Text. Bound Volume in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Medieval Art). France, Paris. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1510.
1510 - "Page of Calligraphy Illuminated with Animals and Plants in a Field of Flowers", Folio from the Shah Jahan Alb. Album leaf in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, verso: ca. 1610–15; recto: ca.1535–45.
1519 - Leaf from a Psalter and Prayerbook: Calendar Page with Labors (recto) and Calendar Page with Peasant (verso). ). Germany, Hildesheim (?), 16th century. ink, tempera and liquid gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1524. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1519 - Leaf from a Psalter and Prayerbook: Initial E with Ornamental Border Containing a Seated Satyr and a Bird Eati. (recto) and Ornamental Border with Flowers and Squirrel (verso) (2 of 3 Excised Leaves). North Germany, Hildesheim (?), 16th century. ink, tempera and liquid gold on vellum. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1524. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of
1519 - St. Anthony Reading. Print in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Prints). Germany. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1519.
1523 - Retreat on an Autumn Day, in Cursive Script. (1368–1644). Handscroll; ink on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, dated 1523. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1523 - Retreat on an Autumn Day, in Cursive Script - Zhu Yunming. Calligraphy in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Chinese Art). China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, dated 1523.
1543 - Nicolai Copernici Torinensis De revolutionibus orbium coelestium - Détail 3. Copernicus, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (1543), which placed the Sun at the centre.
1543 - Andreas Vesalius - De humani corporis fabrica libri septem - Museum Hof van Busleyden Mechelen 6-07-2018. Vesalius, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), the anatomical atlas whose woodcuts reset the relationship between text and illustration.
1543 - Nicolai Copernici Torinensis De revolutionibus orbium coelestium. Copernicus, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (1543), which placed the Sun at the centre.
1543 - Andreas Vesalius (1514-1564) Menselijk skelet - Museum Hof van Busleyden Mechelen 6-07-2018 12-39-03. Vesalius, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), the anatomical atlas whose woodcuts reset the relationship between text and illustration.
1543 - Nicolai Copernici Torinensis De revolutionibus orbium coelestium - Détail 2. Copernicus, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (1543), which placed the Sun at the centre.
1543 - Vesalius, 'De Humani Corporis Fabrica Epitome' Wellcome L0048809. Vesalius, De humani corporis fabrica (1543), the anatomical atlas whose woodcuts reset the relationship between text and illustration.
1550 - Folio 5 reverso de la Tira de Tepechpan. A page from a Mesoamerican pictorial codex, the Aztec and colonial-Mexican book form combining image and glyph.
1550 - Folio from khamse of nezami 15th. A Persian manuscript painting, made as an illustration bound inside a book rather than as a standalone picture.
1550 - Atl tlachinolli. A page from a Mesoamerican pictorial codex, the Aztec and colonial-Mexican book form combining image and glyph.
1550 - An album page with a portrait of a Zand kneeling maiden, Iran, late 18th - early 19th century. A Persian manuscript painting, made as an illustration bound inside a book rather than as a standalone picture.
1550 - Hamse-i Nevâî. A Persian manuscript painting, made as an illustration bound inside a book rather than as a standalone picture.
1550 - Qajar Miniature (1800 - 1850) Georgian State Museum of Theatre, Music, Film and Choreography - Art Palace. A Persian manuscript painting, made as an illustration bound inside a book rather than as a standalone picture.
1550 - Codex Carafianus. Image of the Codex Carafianus as found in Quentin's book (raw JP2 version cropped). It is a 1583 edition of the w:Leuven Vulgate (Genesis ch. 23-24) corrected by the commission established by Sixtus V under the presidency of cardinal Carafa. Quentin writes that the original printed readings and notes in the margins of the Leuven Vulgate have been strikethrough. See the unmodified 1583 Leuven Vulga
1550 - The Bristol Psalter - Lower Cover (Add ms 40731). Style: Greek style (alla greca); Caption: Lower Cover; Colour: Brown; Edge: Unspecified
1556 - Yusuf and Zulaykha (recto); Text Page, Persian Verses (verso). ). Iran, Shiraz or Mashhad, Safavid period (1501–1722). Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1556–65. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1558 - Four Poems: Calligraphy in Cursive Script (xingshu). Calligraphy in the Cleveland Museum of Art (Chinese Art). China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, 1500s-1600s.
1559-12-31 - Cathalogus librorum qui prohibentur. Portada del libro Cathalogus librorum qui prohibentur mandato Illustrissimi & Reverend.[issimi] D.[omini] D.[omini] Ferdinandi de Valdes Hispalen.[sis] Archiepi.[scopi], Inquisitoris Generalis Hispaniae (Pinciae: Sebastianus Martinez excudebat, MDCLIX) [Valladolid, 1559]
1573 - Selections from the Collection of Japanese Poems from Ancient and Modern Times (Kokin wakashū) with Design of. (1573-1615) to Edo period (1615-1858). handscroll; ink on silk with gold and silver. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1600s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1575 - Calligraphic exercises and verses of Hafiz (Persian, about 1325–1389) (verso). ). Persian, Uzbekistan, Bukhara. Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1575–76. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1575 - "The Concourse of the Birds", Folio 11r from a Mantiq al-Tayr (Language of the Birds). Folio from an illustrated manuscript in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Ink, opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on paper. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, ca. 1600.
1575 - "Shaikh San'an beneath the Window of the Christian Maiden", Folio18r from a Mantiq al-Tayr (Language of the Bi. Folio from an illustrated manuscript in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Islamic Art). Opaque watercolor, silver, and gold on paper. Digitised image of the artefact itself; dated to the object, ca. 1600.
1581 - Cholula, Tlaxcala, Mexico WDL502. A page from a Mesoamerican pictorial codex, the Aztec and colonial-Mexican book form combining image and glyph.
1582 - Muchitlan, Tlaxcala, Mexico WDL407. A page from a Mesoamerican pictorial codex, the Aztec and colonial-Mexican book form combining image and glyph.
1585 - Calligraphy: Preface to the Anvar-i Suhaili. 16th century. Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1590. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1591 - Calligraphy. (reigned 1556–1605). Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, c. 1596. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.
1599-06-15 - Muhammad Abu al-Su'ud (Abu Su'ud Efendi) (d. 1574); Du'anama (Book of Prayers) signed Muhammad Amin al-Husayni. MUHAMMAD ABU AL-SU'UD (ABU SU'UD EFENDI) (D. 1574 AD): DU'ANAMA (BOOK OF PRAYERS) SIGNED MUHAMMAD AMIN AL-HUSAYNI AL-TIRMIDHI, OTTOMAN TURKEY, DATED AH 1008/1599-1600 AD An early copy of this prayer book composed by Sultan Sulayman's Grand Mufti, Ottoman manuscript on paper, 39ff. plus 2 fly-leaves, each folio with 13ll. of elegant nasta'liq script, some words picked out in red, text within thick
1600 - Assumption of the Virgin and God the Father Holding an Orb, Coptic Christian manuscript, Ethiopia, Amhara peop. An Ethiopian Christian manuscript in Ge’ez, written on goatskin parchment and bound in the distinctive Ethiopian wooden-board style.
1600 - Skanda Purana, Sanskrit, miniature Grantha script, Whish manuscript collection, acquired 1829 CE. A palm-leaf manuscript from South or Southeast Asia: text incised into dried palm leaf with a stylus and inked, then strung between wooden boards.
1600 - Гэндзи by shakko. Material relating to The Tale of Genji, written by Murasaki Shikibu around 1010 and often called the first novel.
1600 - Ethiopic manuscript cover. An Ethiopian Christian manuscript in Ge’ez, written on goatskin parchment and bound in the distinctive Ethiopian wooden-board style.
1600 - Timbuktu Manuscript. A manuscript from the private libraries of Timbuktu in Mali, covering law, astronomy, mathematics and theology in Arabic.
1600 - Folio Quran Maghrebi script Mamma Haidara Library 34119. A manuscript from the private libraries of Timbuktu in Mali, covering law, astronomy, mathematics and theology in Arabic.
1600 - Selections from the New Collection of Japanese Poems from Ancient and Modern Times (Shinkokin wakashū) with Pr - Hon'ami Kōetsu. Selections from the New Collection of Japanese Poems from Ancient and Modern Times (Shinkokin wakashū) with Printed Designs of Chinese Lions and Crab Finger Grass. Japan, Edo period (1615–1868). handscroll; ink, gold, and silver on paper. Cleveland Museum of Art, early 1600s. This is a reproduction of the object itself, not a modern photograph of a building.

Full text archive: /loreline-text/books.md