New Project Explores the Craft of Writing in the Medieval Nordic World - Medievalists.net

"CHARM is built around a large-scale survey of material connected to three major writing centres-Turku, Naantali, and Viipuri-in the 15th century. By comparing charters and book fragments together, the researchers aim to map how writing practices were adopted, modified, and localised, and what that meant for society and administration in a region that was then part of the Swedish realm."

"A key feature of CHARM is its deliberately cross-disciplinary approach. Alongside palaeography, content analysis, and codicology, the project uses non-invasive techniques to study writing supports and materials-especially parchment and inks-rather than focusing only on textual content."

"Biocodicology, including non-invasive ZooMS to identify animal species used for parchment, and PQI (Parchment Quality Index) to assess production patterns and quality. Pigment and ink analysis aimed at identifying pigments, colourants, and binders-evidence that can help with chronology, locality, and even connections to particular scribes."

CHARM, a cross-disciplinary research initiative led by Tuomas Heikkil at the University of Helsinki, investigates the origins and development of written culture in medieval Finland. The project focuses on three major 15th-century writing centers—Turku, Naantali, and Viipuri—examining how writing practices were adopted, modified, and localized within the Swedish realm. Beyond traditional textual analysis, CHARM employs innovative scientific methods to study physical materials including parchment, inks, and pigments. These techniques include biocodicology, non-invasive ZooMS analysis to identify animal species used for parchment, and pigment analysis using XRF and FTIR. This multifaceted approach aims to map the ecosystem of Finland's oldest written culture and clarify why local writing practices remain poorly understood despite Finland's strong Christian and Latin cultural connections.

Read at Medievalists.net