Literature in The Past

Abstract

This article deals with the literature in the past. Literature existed as soon as ancient Mesopotamians learned to write in the 30th century B.C. This ancient writing was engraved in stone or written on papyrus scrolls, some of which still exist. However, the “earliest surviving, intact European book” is from 700 A.D. This book, called the St. Cuthbert Gospel, is housed in the British Library and is in truly phenomenal condition thanks to massive conservation efforts. The Gospel is pocket size, bound in red goat leather and contains the Gospel of John. Early books such as the St. Cuthbert Gospel were written by hand and typically made for every day study or devotion. However, because books of this early age were so tedious to create, only well-educated, wealthy patrons owned books (or those with religious purposes). All of this seems fairly simple, but it’s surprising how quickly you might forget about the inaccessibility of books some 1300 years ago. In fact, until Johannes Gutenberg created the first printing press in 1439, allowing quick and easy printing, books were extremely rare.