linen and cotton rag materials

Ingredients

linen, cotton, gelatin (animal hides)

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

Old papers (pre-19th century) were handmade using linen and cotton rag materials. These provided long fibers and high cellulose content. The paper was sized using gelatin derived from animal hides (p. 20).

Evidence

"Paper made before the 19th century was often made by hand from linen and cotton rag materials which are excellent sources of high cellulose, long fibers. Gelatin, from animal hides, was used to size such papers"

Remarks

These papers were typically neutral to slightly alkaline, which granted them superior storage properties compared to acidic modern wood-fiber papers (p. 20). Paper degradation is primarily driven by acid-catalyzed hydrolysis and metal-catalyzed oxidation, often caused by the ink applied to the surface (p. 19, 22).