Over a pint of ale in a London pub:
"Listen, Arthur, why has your herald spent five takes fighting that parchment scroll?"
"It keeps... Read more
Over a pint of ale in a London pub:
"Listen, Arthur, why has your herald spent five takes fighting that parchment scroll?"
"It keeps slipping from his grip, rolling right back up, and hitting the poor fellow on the nose."
"Historically accurate, though, isn't it?"
"Of course! Exactly how they did it eight hundred years ago."
"Hate to break it to you, Arthur. Eight hundred years ago, no messengers or heralds ever unrolled scrolls in town squares."
"That is news to me! Are you joking?"
"Have you ever tried carrying a roll inside your tunic or in a saddlebag? It gets crushed! Any seal on it would break instantly. In the thirteenth century, round rolls existed only for archive storage. For correspondence, people used flat packets. They folded the parchment in four and handed it to the messenger."
"And how did they seal them?"
"Depends on the purpose of the charter. For a closed packet, they cut a narrow strip of parchment from the bottom margin. They wrapped this tongue around the flat parcel, applied hot wax, and pressed the seal matrix into it. That produced a tightly sealed packet."
"What if the decree was for the public?"
"Then they left the packet open. They threaded a cord through a slit in the bottom edge, applied hot wax to it, and stamped the seal matrix. The impression on the wax disc hung freely below, while the herald held a flat sheet and calmly read the order to the crowd. So stop torturing your crew, finish your ale, and tell the prop department to fold that parchment into a packet!"
#HistoricalDrama #PropMaster #ArtDepartment #ScriptDevelopment #ArchiveResearch #FactChecking
"Listen, Arthur, why has your herald spent five takes fighting that parchment scroll?"
"It keeps slipping from his grip, rolling right back up, and hitting the poor fellow on the nose."
"Historically accurate, though, isn't it?"
"Of course! Exactly how they did it eight hundred years ago."
"Hate to break it to you, Arthur. Eight hundred years ago, no messengers or heralds ever unrolled scrolls in town squares."
"That is news to me! Are you joking?"
"Have you ever tried carrying a roll inside your tunic or in a saddlebag? It gets crushed! Any seal on it would break instantly. In the thirteenth century, round rolls existed only for archive storage. For correspondence, people used flat packets. They folded the parchment in four and handed it to the messenger."
"And how did they seal them?"
"Depends on the purpose of the charter. For a closed packet, they cut a narrow strip of parchment from the bottom margin. They wrapped this tongue around the flat parcel, applied hot wax, and pressed the seal matrix into it. That produced a tightly sealed packet."
"What if the decree was for the public?"
"Then they left the packet open. They threaded a cord through a slit in the bottom edge, applied hot wax to it, and stamped the seal matrix. The impression on the wax disc hung freely below, while the herald held a flat sheet and calmly read the order to the crowd. So stop torturing your crew, finish your ale, and tell the prop department to fold that parchment into a packet!"
#HistoricalDrama #PropMaster #ArtDepartment #ScriptDevelopment #ArchiveResearch #FactChecking
