Papyrus gave people a new way to record their history. Prior to the invention of papyrus, Egyptians recorded their history by covering with inscriptions the stone walls of their buildings. Records of king's exploits and their campaigns were therefore presented in walls and ceilings of temples and palaces. Scribes who wrote Scrolls were not "authors" in the modern sense, they were responsible for writing, copying, and editing. for the leader as directed by him. Government decrees and proclamations, concerning royal ceremonies, laws, taxes, public health, and criminals, have been dubbed news since ancient times. Were you aware of the use of Papyrus in Ancient times?

Census-taking in the ancient world is older than the Chinese, Egyptian, Greek and Roman civilizations, dating back to the Babylonians. The first known census was taken by the Babylonians in 3800 B.C.E., nearly 6000 years ago. Records suggest that it was taken every six or seven years and counted the number of people and livestock, as well as quantities of butter, honey, milk, wool and vegetables. The most infamous record is the Domesday book, which is still safely stored and readable. I have a book which contains reproductions of this inventory of Britannia. Decreed by William the Conqueror, everything in the land was to be counted. Were you aware of the Domesday Book, before this survey?

The following is a record of a census taken in the year 104 A.D. which contains similar wording to that found in the Bible; "From the Prefect of Egypt, Gaius Vibius Maximus. Being that the time has come for the house to house census, it is mandatory that all men who are living outside of their districts return to their own homelands in order that the census may be carried out." This type of decree required Mary & Joseph to return to Bethlehem. Did you know that it was a Census of the Roman Empire that caused Mary & Joseph to travel to Bethlehem, and the cause of no rooms at the inn?

The ability to write and keep records was arguably one of the greatest achievements of ancient human civilization. The invention of papyrus paper by the Egyptians changed the scene since papyrus-paper proved to be the ideal writing material of the time. Before the use of papyrus, painting and writing was mostly done on stone, clay, back leaves and potsherd. These materials had a number of disadvantages most notably of which were lack of flexibility and bulkiness which made them less portable. The invention of papyrus led to the increase in written works since this material was more suitable that the previously used products. Have you ever seen papyrus, or a scroll?

Two materials in particular led to the eventual decline of papyrus use; Parchment and rag paper. Parchment which was developed by the Arabs had an advantage over papyrus since it could be manufactured in many regions of the world unlike papyrus whose production was restricted to Egypt. In addition, parchment was easier to bind into codex than papyrus. Rag paper was invented by the Chinese and the technology was brought from the Far East by Arabian traders during between the seventh and eight centuries. As such, the eighth century saw the decline in the use of the expensive papyrus as cotton paper began to rise in popularity. By the twelfth century, papyrus had entirely disappeared, replaced by parchment and vellum. Did you know that the original parchment was made of animal skins?

In Part Three we will review the invention of paper made from wood, and cotton. Important Proclamations, documents and Town Criers or Bellmen. Have you ever seen a Town Crier?