Silvia Hufnagel
Welcome to Life of Paper
As many of you might already know, a new project on paper in Iceland has started earlier this year: Life of Paper. In Life of Paper we...
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A material history of 15th-17th century paper used for
Icelandic handwritten and printed texts from
production to use and reuse
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Silvia Hufnagel
Dec 23, 20212 min read
Þorláksmessa and Þorlákur's Bible
Today, Þorláksmessa, the Mass of St Þorlákur, is celebrated in Iceland. Born in Hlíðarendi in 1133, Þorlákur Þórhallsson was ordained as...
Silvia Hufnagel
Nov 17, 20212 min read
Paper and Parchment
When paper was on the rise and began to supplant parchment, some manuscripts were made of both materials, paper and parchment. In these...
Silvia Hufnagel
Sep 20, 20212 min read
Paper Seals
Welcome back to Paper Trails’ blog! Part of the summer was spent in the manuscript vaults of Iceland, and we have returned with exciting...
Silvia Hufnagel
Jul 15, 20212 min read
Weapons of Steel vs Weapons of Paper and Ink
In my last blog entry I wrote about the paper uses of the last Catholic bishop of Skálholt, Ögmundur Pálsson, and of his Lutheran...
Silvia Hufnagel
Jun 20, 20213 min read
Paper, a Catholic Bishop and His Lutheran Successor
The rise of paper in Iceland is connected to several bishops. In this post, I will focus on two bishops of Skálholt: Ögmundur Pálsson,...
Silvia Hufnagel
May 25, 20211 min read
Watermarks and Music
On 21-22 May I was kindly invited to participate with a presentation in the virtual conference “Wasserzeichen und Musikwissenschaft”...
Silvia Hufnagel
Apr 20, 20212 min read
Lost Books
In the recent online conference Care & Conservation of Manuscripts 18, my colleague Guðvarður Már Gunnlaugsson gave a lecture on lost...
Silvia Hufnagel
Mar 16, 20212 min read
When did paper become common?
Today, we find paper everywhere. But when did it become common in Iceland? The earliest uses of and references to paper stem from the...
Silvia Hufnagel
Feb 15, 20212 min read
Paper and Parchment Recycling
Early modern paper was made of rags, as I have written in the last blog entry, and was thus a true recycling product. Even though the...
Silvia Hufnagel
Jan 15, 20212 min read
The Stuff that Paper is Made of
I was once asked why there have been no paper mills in Iceland. I started explaining that there was hardly any linen clothing available,...
Silvia Hufnagel
Dec 15, 20202 min read
Cartapesta in Kaupangur
For December Paper Trails has a special present for you: a devotional relief, depicting the Adoration of the Magi. The three Magi have...
Silvia Hufnagel
Nov 13, 20201 min read
How are you?
How are you, Icelandic manuscript style, on Friday the 13th (a-c, I hope!). Also, today is Árni Magnússon's birthday! Hip hip, hooray! a)...
Silvia Hufnagel
Oct 20, 20202 min read
Book Storage in Iceland
Encouraged by some recent twitter threads, I conducted a short survey of book storage. In continental monasteries in the twelfth century,...
Silvia Hufnagel
Sep 21, 20202 min read
Fire and Paper
We are back from summer holidays and hope that you are all safe and sound in the pandemic, the social upheavals and the fires. Fire is a...
Silvia Hufnagel
Jul 15, 20202 min read
Holiday reads for paper enthusiasts
Dear all, now that the summer with potential holidays has arrived, I compiled a short list of books that will make great holiday reads...
Silvia Hufnagel
Jun 17, 20202 min read
Coat of Arms in Watermarks, and happy Icelandic National Day!
Coat of arms were popular motifs for watermarks and are often found Icelandic paper charters and manuscripts. On the occasion of the...
Silvia Hufnagel
May 15, 20203 min read
Spot the Difference - the Solution
Last month we presented you with a little game of Spot the differences between watermarks. Here are the solutions: Easy: These images...
Silvia Hufnagel
Apr 10, 20201 min read
Spot the Difference
Dear all, I hope you are all healthy and doing well in self-isolation and with home office. Since many of you, including me, cannot go on...
Silvia Hufnagel
Mar 13, 20202 min read
Wash your hands
Wash your hands is the new worldwide credo, and rightly so, as it can prevent the spreading of the Corona virus SARS-CoV-2. Washing hands...
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