#rubricator

[historywaitsfornoone]

Medieval Books

How medieval books were produced from selecting parchment to binding, including scribes, parchmenters, rubricators, illuminators, stationers, and others. Als...

[turnbullrarebooks]

Rubricator's signature in red ink in a 15th century book.

At first in 15th-century printed books, rubrication (all the markings in red and sometimes blue), was carried out by hand after printing was completed, but usually before a book was purchased.

Most of the time we don't know who carried out the rubrication, but sometimes rubricators did sign their work. This was usually at the end of the text and in red as that was the colour ink in their pens. In our copy of Turrecremata, Quaestiones Evangeliorum  this is indeed what has happened.

In translation, the section in red above reads: This most useful and praiseworthy work rubricated by me Herbordum Wernyngh de Borchorst, after printing, was paid (sold) for 26 shillings of solid money, without the binding, in the year of our Lord 1487 (thanks be to God) while I was then pastor in Vreden, (and) at that time chief pastor.