Books Used To Be Very Valuable And Highly Sought After, So Scribes Would Write Curses Inside Them, Threatening Thieves With Pain And Suffering

bob - stock.adobe.com-  illustrative purposes only
bob - stock.adobe.com- illustrative purposes only

The invention of the printing press in the mid-fifteenth century was revolutionary because, for the first time ever, it allowed books to be created more quickly and efficiently.

But in the days before books could be mass-produced, the process of creating them was very tedious and grueling work.

Only a few pages per day could be completed by hand-copying. Scribes would carefully form letters on parchment during the light of day, not wanting to take any risks with candles. They had to be sure not to make errors of any kind.

Because of the amount of effort that went into making them, books were very valuable and highly sought after by thieves.

As a result, scribes went to great lengths to protect their work.

In the beginning, or sometimes the end of books, scribes would write dramatic curses threatening thieves with pain and suffering.

If a book were damaged or stolen, the wrath of God and other methods of torture would befall the perpetrator.

During that time period, curses were taken seriously, and people believed in them. No one really wanted to risk experiencing an agonizing death.

Marc Drogin is the author of a book called Anathema! Medieval Scribes and the History of Book Curses. It contains the most thorough compilation of book curses to date.

bob – stock.adobe.com- illustrative purposes only

One example of the curse of ex-communication goes something like this: “May the sword of Anathema slay if anyone steals this book away.”

Some curses could get a little more graphic, such as this one: “If anyone take this book away, let him die the death; let him be fried in a pan; let the falling sickness and fever size him; let him be broken on the wheel, and hanged. Amen.”

The above curse was found in the Arnstein Bible at the British Library, which was written in the twelfth century in Germany.

There were also other curses directed toward those who might mishandle or compromise the integrity of a book.

Things like leafing through pages with dirty fingers, creasing pages, sneezing in the vicinity of a book, and other acts of carelessness were severely frowned upon.

One such curse reads, “Who folds a leaf downe ye divel toaste browne, who makes marke or blotte ye divel roaste hot, who stealeth thisse boke ye divel shall cooke.”

Now, you might think twice about the way you treat your books!

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Emily  Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a ... More about Emily Chan

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