The Illuminated Alphabet with calligraphy by Timothy Noad and Text by Patricia Seligman is both lovely to look at and informative.

http://nicolevlozano.blogspot.com/2010/03/new-acquisitions-to-sacg-library.html ( )

This is probably the best book for a beginner in the scribal arts. It really does a good job removing the "fear factor", with *truly* step-by-step illustrations of how to use pretty much every technique, from the ancient (egg tempera) to the ultra-modern (gilding using Elmer's glue). (How many times have you seen a supposedly step-by-step guide... which leaves out that one crucial step that you keep having trouble with? Well, this book actually has photographs of every single step, with clear descriptions and directions and advice.) It also gives a nice overview of the many different styles of illumination. ( )

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