Writing tablet

Fragment of a bone writing tablet, decorated with a scene of the Crucifixion. Christ is shown on the cross with the figure of the Virgin Mary on his left side. The left side of the tablet is missing. The reverse recessed for wax and is divided into two compartments, the deeper being at the top. Both are crudely scratched with crosshatching. Tablets of ivory or wood with wax-filled compartments were used as handy notebooks for the ephemeral jottings of the day. The tablets, often as many as six, were laced together with strips of leather or parchment in the form of a book. Those on the outside provided a protective cover and the exterior surfaces were often embellished with figurative or geometric carvings. Biblical scenes, figures of saints or secular images of courtly love and leisure pursuits were popular. The tablets were housed in special travelling cases of leather and the notes were scribed into the wax with a bone or metal stylus.