Signposts on the Page: Reading Devotional Texts Through Scribal Signs and Symbols

Abstract

Medieval authors used an elaborate system of tools and techniques to organize texts in a transparent and orderly way. Toward the beginning of the 13th century, scribes adopted some of the old tools and put them to use in new functions. These measures are discernible, inter alia, in pastoral works devised to aid the clergy to carry out their duties more effectively. The goal of this paper is to analyse how the techniques were used on a microscale – in short texts of doctrinal importance – to convey complex theological notions in a visually clear and practical way.