King Roger II Bans the Use of Paper for Official Documents

1145

"The Cappella Palatina, at Palermo, the most wonderful of Roger's churches, with Norman doors, Saracenic arches, Byzantine dome, and roof adorned with Arabic scripts, is perhaps the most striking product of the brilliant and mixed civilization over which the grandson of the Norman Tancred ruled." (From the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica).

In 1145 Roger II, King of Sicily and Africa, banned the use of paper for official documents, believing it to be less permanent than parchment. (Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin 5). Some Europeans were initially distrustful of paper, which was introduced to Europe from the Arab world during the period of the Crusades.

Timeline Themes

Papermaking by Hand

Survival of Information / Philology

Conservation, Preservation & Restoration