Script History- Latin Scripts of Late Antiquity

Question 1

The two latin capital majuscule scripts

Answer 1

Square capitals and Rustic capitals

Question 2

Discuss the use of Square capitals…

Answer 2

Square capitals were adapted for use in books but only a few examples remain.
It seems to have been reserved for ‘de luxe’ manuscripts such as Virgil and the Bible

Question 3

Why were Rustic capitals developed?

Answer 3

Square capitals came first, but its angular forms and straight lines were better suited to a chisel than a pen, and was extremely laborious to write. Therefore the Rustic capital was dive;oped

Question 4

Describe the square capital script- design/appearance…

Answer 4

Square capital is an angular majuscule script often written scriptura continua or with words occasionally serrated by dots.
Has lots of serifs and right angles
Has few contractions and no punctuation marks. ligatures are rarely used

Question 5

Discuss the use of Square Capitals…

Answer 5

It’s formal rules meant that it was a prestigious script, but was so slow to write that it starts to become less common in the 5th century and then disappears altogether apart from in artificial reproductions in later chapter headings

Question 6

What is the main difficulty with reading latin majuscule script?

Answer 6

The words are not separated (scriptura continua)

Question 7

What are square capitals a good illustration of?

Answer 7

They illustrate the cyclical history of western handwriting an its Roman origins as the script differs little from modern block capitals

Question 8

What two letters tend to be taller than others in Square capitals?

Answer 8

F and L are sometimes made to extend above the other letters– so as not to be confused with E and I

Question 9

Discuss the use of Rustic capitals…

Answer 9

Rustic capitals were used between the 1st and 9th centuries, mainly between the 4th and the 6th– later reserved mainly for rubrics

Question 10

The hierarchy of Late Antique script:

Answer 10

Square Capitals
Rustic Capitals
Uncial

Question 11

Differences between Square capitals and Rustic capitals

Answer 11

The letters are narrower
Less serifs
Cross strokes are waved and shorter- more curved lines generally
— Its no less formed but easier to write

Question 12

Similarities between Square and Rustic capitals

Answer 12

Both used for ‘de luxe’ pagan authors mostly
Both 2 line scripts (mostly)
Both use few contractions and punctuation

Question 13

Main distinction between uncial and traditional capitular script?

Answer 13

The major transformations are that the ascenders are curved and the angles rounded. But in some respects it is still a capitular script, as some of the letter are almost the same, but it is generally more transitional.
Ascenders and descenders are also often more obvious, although it is still mainly a two line script

Question 14

The use of uncial…

Answer 14

We don’t know when it was first introduced but it is common as a book hand from the 4th/5th century, and replaced Rustic capitals as the most popular script in the 5th.
Also, when latin became the official language of the Roman church uncial became the established script for church and biblical MS– so usually associated with the church

Question 15

The use of abbreviations in uncial…

Answer 15

Not totally characteristic, but there are a few

Question 16

What are the letters that were most modified in the transition from Capitular to Uncial script?

Answer 16

A, D, E, G, H, M, Q, T and U

Question 17

Which letter is often taller than the others in Uncial?

Answer 17

L

Question 18

What does the uncial A look like?

Answer 18

It has a thorn like bow and looks like a ‘Lauren Carter’ A

Question 19

What is uncial’s place in the script hierarchy?

Answer 19

It is more decorative than cursive, yet less formal than the capitular alphabet- it is an attempt to combine rapidity and design.

Question 20

When was half-uncial used?

Answer 20

Used mainly from the late 5th century to the late 8th– it can be described as a step towards the trend for minuscule letters

Question 21

What are the distinctive features of half-uncial?

Answer 21

It is a 4 line script- it has many ascenders and descenders
the half-uncial G
heavy use of ligatures

Question 22

Why was half-uncial developed?

Answer 22

Out of the need for a quicker form of script, although its still not particularly fast– it was a humble script.
But there is confusion about it’s origins and many scholars believe that it didn’t actually develop from uncial

Question 23

The scope of the use of half-uncial…

Answer 23

Half-uncial was incredibly influential and was used all over Europe
This means that there is some variation in the forms of the letters depending on when and where they were written

Question 24

When do ligatures tend to be used in the half-uncial script?

Answer 24

Ligatures appear primarily at the end of a line where the scribe had run out of room, as oppose to being a standard practise within the text.