Publications [#379126] of William Johnson

Articles

1. Johnson, W. "From Bookroll to Codex." The Manuscript across Pre-modern Eurasia.. (2025).
   (last updated on 2026/01/15)

   Abstract:
   The first part of this overview of ancient books in the Graeco-Roman world focuses on the details of scribal production for papyrus rolls containing ancient literary texts (‘bookrolls’), so as to give a clear view of the regularities of format and convention in such books, with discussion of how those regular features interlocked with use by readers. The second part gives a summary view of the scribal production of the ancient codex, with close study of the period of transition from bookroll to the codex, and with particular attention to the question of the apparent Christian preference for the codex.