Smith, William: A smaller dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities (London, 1871)

LIBKR.

238

LIBERTUS.

a pocket or memoranduia book. 4. Libcllus
is used by the Roman jurists as equivalent
to Oratio Principis. 5. The word libellus was
also applied to a variety of writings, which in
nost cases probably consisted of one page only;
such as short letters, advertisements, &c.

LIBER (/3i0Au>k), a book. The most com-
mon material on which books were written
by the Greeks and Romans, was the thin
coats or rind (liber, whence the Latin name
for a book) of the Egyptian papyrus. This
plant was called by the Egyptians Byblos
(/3v/3Aos), whence the Greeks derived their
name for a book (fii&kuw). The papyrus-

tree grows in swamps to the height of te
feet and more, and paper (charia) was pre
pared from the thin coats or pellicles whic*
surround the plant. Next to the papyrus
parchment (membrana) was the most com
mon material for writing upon. It is sai
to have been invented by Eumenes II. kin
of Pergamus, in consequence of the prohibi
tion of the export of papyrus from Egyp
by Ptolemy Epiphanes. It is probable, how
ever, that Eumenes introduced only som
improvement in the manufacture of parch
ment, as Herodotus mentions writing o
skins as common in his time, and says tha

0

Ancient Writing Materials. (From a Painting at Herculaneum.)

the Ionians had been accustomed to give the
name of skins (8i«i0e'p<u) to books. The an-
cients wrote usually on only one side of the
paper or parchment. The back of the paper,
instead of being written upon, was usually
stained with saffron colour or the cedrus,
which produced a yellow colour. As paper
and parchment were dear, it was frequently
the custom to erase or wash out writing of
little importance, and to write upon the
paper or parchment again, which was then
called Palimpsestus (n-aAiiuuVrjaToc). The paper
or parchment was joined together so as to
form one sheet, and when the work was
finished, it was rolled on a staff, whence it
was called a volume?! ; and hence we have
the expression evolvere librum. When an
author divided a work into several books, it
was usual to include only one book in a
volume or roll, so that there was generally
the same number of volumes as of books. In
the papyTi rolls found at Herculaneum, the
stick on which the papyrus is rolled does not
project from the papyrus, but is concealed
by it. Usually, however, there were balls
or bosses, ornamented or painted, called um-
bilici or comua, which were fastened at each
end of the stick and projected from the
papyrus. The ends of the roll were carefully
cut, polished with pumice—tone and coloured
black ; they were called the geminae frontes.
The way in which a book was held while
reading is shown in the following cut, taken
from a painting at Herculaneum. To pro-
tect the roll from injury it was frequently

put into a parchment ease, which was staine
with a purple colour or with the yellow o
the Lutum. The title of the book (tittUui
index) was written on a small strip of pa
pyrus or parchment with a light red colon
(coccum or minium).

Book held by a crowned Poi-t. (From a Painting at
Herculaneum.)

LIBERALIA. [Dionysia.]
LIBERI. [Ingentji ; Libertus.]
LIBERTUS, LIBERTINES. Freemen
(liberi) were either Ingenui [Ingentji] or