The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1878-09-19
Some Uses OF Photography.
lHarp.r,. Weekly.l

Ibhlp'l N"hN'I
Not only does photography reproduce
with absolute perfection details which
the most scrupulous eye.work could moi
trace without errors, but IL actually
sees what isinviJbIe; the sensitive platt
receives impressions which altogether
escape the human eye, Thus, n French
ambassador in Greece, Baron Gross, who
used 10 amuse himself with photography
took one day view Of the ACrOpOlis
He never looked at it again till he wa,
back in Paris; and then, examining it
with the microscope, he was astonishcd
TO find on stone in the foreground the
figure of n lion dcy0uring serpent,
in the very earliest style Of Greek art
Here was something which none OF the
antiquarians, who have counted every
stone in the old temple Of Pallas Athenc,
had ever noticed the sun had found il
out, and the Frenchman's photograph
had made it evident to the eyes Of the
men. II is the same with MSS. The
parts that have through age and damp
become ilIcgiblc stand out in the photo.
graphic copy rs strOngly marked rs the
rest Ink gets yellow with time; the
peroxide Of iron, which gives its color.
ing, is gradually oXidiHed until even a
magnifying glass can trace nothing ON
the parchment; but the chemical effect
remains; the ink, which has become in.
visible, still has power TO diminish the
Susceptibility to light Of those parts on
which it was laid and so the writing,
which had long since disappeared, comes
ont black and IegibIc by the aid Of the
camera.
This use Of photography is very yalu.
able 10 the classical scholar IL gives
him chance Of recovering the MSS. Of
Greek and Roman authors whose works
were supposed TO have persisted Be
sides the burning of Libraries like that
of Alexandria, and the natural decay
when rolls Of parChmcnts were stored for
safety in damp cellars, there was, all
through the Dark Ages, Il cruel custom
oil taking classical MSS, and using the
parchment up again, after rubbing of
the ink ~ far AZ possible with pumcc-
stone. Thus, ii a new acCOunt-bOOk was
wanted, and the monastery funds were
low, instead Of buying a few new skins
Brother pauIus, sub-prior and bursar
thought he was doing very clever
thing by diving into the library and
picking out volume containing, per
haps, the now lost books of l.ivy; per.
hapshaIfadozcn Greek plays any thing,
except, Of course, the writings OF the
fathers and those Of Aristotle, whom,
somehow, the medieval schooI-mcn had
come TO look upon with n much rcycr-
cnCc rs if he had been father Of the
Church. The said volume was handed
over to serving brother, who washed
it, pumiCcd it, and got rid as wholly ao
he could Of the lngoIdly writing which
it was n pious work to render iIlcgibIc,
This sort Of thing went ON most ygor,
OusIy Just before the discovery or intro
duction from the East Of papcrmaklng;
for, OF course, "a civilization advanced
the uses Of parchment and yrIIum null
IipIed much more rapidly than sheep
md calves did. So it comes to pass that |
n almost every monastery there are |.
ome Of these palimpscsts-' T., rcscrapcd .
which bills and cx- |
lenses, or monastic and theological rub .
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