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In the early Middle Ages monasteries were virtually the only source of literacy and of books. The copying of manuscripts, a highly specialized skill, was rewarded with appropriate esteem, and a number of scribes are known by name. The detailed organization of a monastic scriptorium is still imperfectly known, but illustrations show desks and writing materials.
The illustration from the Gospel Lectionary (folio 124v) shows two scribes in the scriptorium of Echternach. The scriptorium often occupied a sheltered part of the cloister.
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