Why Were Medieval Books So Expensive?

Imagine it’s the 14th century, and you’re in need of a book.

You can’t just walk into a bookstore or shop Amazon. And you’re definitely going to need some serious dough. Medieval books were really expensive. Here's why.

A significant expense was the medium. Medieval European books were made from parchment. Parchment is made from a type of animal hide—usually cow or sheep—that was processed by professional parchmenters who applied their skill for weeks to prepare a single skin.

Then there’s the cost of the other materials needed: ink for the scribe, pigments for illuminating pictures or decoration, or gold leaf to make something especially fancy.

Now, factor in the labor.

In the early Middle Ages, most bookmaking was done by monks. But by the 13th century, the industry had grown to include specially trained artisans working for a wide variety of customers.

Often a single book was coordinated by someone called a libraire, sort of like a contractor who charged their own fee. The libraire would employ scribes who wrote the text out by hand, illuminators who made the illustrations, and binders who put those pages together to make a book.