04-08-2009, 05:35 PM
This is silly and pendantic, but I think it's very interesting to think about. This especially came to mind after I spent $30 on a pack of nice vellum.
I've noticed the amount of characters who pin up parchment posters, write notes on parchments, have notebooks full of the stuff and whatnot. It's clear it has regular paper. It's also clear that parchment looks cool and sounds more rustic/vintage/antiquated.
In reality, parchment is actually... very expensive. It's very durable and still used today for formal documents and high-end invitations. It's sister to vellum. Unless it's vegan, it's made from cured, stretch animal hide (lambskin, if I remember right).
Considering WoW, the sheer amount of books readily available to people says that basic paper is accessible and widely produced. Now, a Paladin's libram may very well be some blessed parchment, and inscriptions and schematics are, understandably due to their content's value and material in question's durability, varying grades of parchment.
IRL, before the process of making paper was dragged over to Europe, many towns only had one book due to them being written on precious parchment, usually the Bible. Also, parchment can be recycled; you can scrape the ink off and write on it.
When people tack posters up in parchment, it's much like sitting down a welcome mat made from precious furs. While durable, you want to keep it out of the elements. And, since it's made from animal skin, temperature control keeps it from going brittle.
Consider your beloved parchment next time, my friends.
I've noticed the amount of characters who pin up parchment posters, write notes on parchments, have notebooks full of the stuff and whatnot. It's clear it has regular paper. It's also clear that parchment looks cool and sounds more rustic/vintage/antiquated.
In reality, parchment is actually... very expensive. It's very durable and still used today for formal documents and high-end invitations. It's sister to vellum. Unless it's vegan, it's made from cured, stretch animal hide (lambskin, if I remember right).
Considering WoW, the sheer amount of books readily available to people says that basic paper is accessible and widely produced. Now, a Paladin's libram may very well be some blessed parchment, and inscriptions and schematics are, understandably due to their content's value and material in question's durability, varying grades of parchment.
IRL, before the process of making paper was dragged over to Europe, many towns only had one book due to them being written on precious parchment, usually the Bible. Also, parchment can be recycled; you can scrape the ink off and write on it.
When people tack posters up in parchment, it's much like sitting down a welcome mat made from precious furs. While durable, you want to keep it out of the elements. And, since it's made from animal skin, temperature control keeps it from going brittle.
Consider your beloved parchment next time, my friends.