College and Research Libraries 88 College & Research Libraries learning new concepts in library school may become confused when encounter- ing old and new terms in the literature. He explains that the computer revolu- tion has changed the nature of many parts of bibliographic control and made new terminology desirable. Generic terms are replacing those whose primary mean- ings are related to books and to print. Hagler explains such old/ new terms as entry /record, heading/access point, and collation/physical description, putting the definition of the old terms into histori- cal perspective and showing why they are now too restrictive. Part 2 of the book, ''Library Standards," includes clear explanations of such con- cepts as name authority work, controlled subject vocabularies, uniform titles, and superimposition. Hagler stresses the im- portance of standardization for ade- quate identification of a document and .. consistency of description to avoid un- necessary ambiguity. In the past, a li- brary created its own rilles of practice independently. Common standards and practices are now widely followed by libraries in creating and communicating their catalog records. With common rules, institutions can contribute records to a use- ful union catalog, use each others' records interchangeably, and acquire records produced from a central source. Com- patibility is needed, not necessarily uni- formity. A library obtaining some of its records externally naturally adjusts its internal cataloging practices to conform. Idiosyncratic variants tend to disappear. Rapid changes in the nature of biblio- graphic controlled the author to begin this revision of the 1982 edition in 1985. Future changes will probably lead to subsequent editions. The present edition quite adequately describes what the bib- liographic record is today and how it came to be that way.-Elaine A. Franco, University of California, Davis. Avrin, Leila. Scribes, Script, and Books: The Book Arts from Antiquity to theRe- naissance. Chicago: American Library Assn.; London: British Library, 1991. 356p. $60 (ISBN 0-7123-0245-X). LC 89-18024. January 1992 Readers interested in the history of books before the advent of printing pre- viously either had to be content with brief preliminary surveys found in histo- ries of the printed book or had to work through numerous specialized publica- tions. Scribes, Script, and Books is an at- tempt to remedy this situation. While it primarily focuses on manuscripts and books, it touches on such areas as epigraphy and numismatics as well. Some general historical and literary background mate- rial is included also to set the develop- ment of writing and books in context. Avrin sets the stage with a brief intro- ductory overview. She then treats in de- tail the early history of writing and the development of the alphabet. Individual chapters are devoted to books and to writing among each of the major ancient civilizations: Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, and Roman. The discus- sion of Roman books leads directly into a survey of Latin scripts from early Roman inscriptions to modern calligra- phy. Avrin next deals with medieval manuscripts and illumination. Islamic books are discussed separately. Chap- ters on papermaking, bookbinding, and block printing round out the work. The chapters on Hebrew and Islamic books are particularly useful, since these topics have seldom been treated in any detail for the nonspecialist. Avrin's dis- cussion of Hebrew manuscripts is com- prehensive and extends from ancient and medieval scribes and manuscripts to the modern preparation of Torah scrolls and other texts for religious use. Her coverage of Islamic book arts draws at- tention to the many influences that these have had on Western bookmaking. In addition to preserving and later restor- ing to the West many classical Greek scien- tific and philosophical works, the Islamic world introduced to Europe the Chinese inventions of paper and marbled paper. Islamic binders also heavily influenced the techniques and materials used by Western bookbinders. Avrin stresses the essentially conser- vative nature of bookmaking throughout her work. Innovations occur in materials and technique and are duly noted, but many of the basic characteristics of the book arose at an early date and have persisted. For example, Avrin traces the development of the author's portrait from royal portraits at the head of Babylonian inscriptions through late antique Roman and medieval manuscripts to modem books. Similarly, colophons were found in ancient Egyptian and Greek manu- scripts and persist even in some printed books today. Avrin also relates the mod- ern practice of printing reference works with multiple columns per page to the appearance of the ancient papyrus rolls with their multiple columns. Those who wonder how new electronic formats might influence the presentation of text will note that it has so far changed very little, despite thousands of years and many technical developments. Avrin discusses many interesting top- ics, such as the manufacture of parch- ment and the mixing of inks in different eras, and she includes much useful sup- plementary material. Numerous maps and chronological tables help the reader to set developments in geographical and historical perspective. The brief summa- ries of historical and cultural develop- ments that appear in most chapters are helpful, although there is some oversim- plification and the occasional inaccu- racy. For example, the history of Roman provincial administration and the devel- opment of the equestrian order are over- simplified to the point of being misleading (and might be better omitted altogether). The Greco-Persian wars con- cluded in 479 B.C., not 489, as stated in one of the tables. Avrin incorrectly implies that a number of well-known authors of the Roman Republic (Plautus, Terence, Book Reviews 89 Lucilius, and others) actually lived dur- ing the imperial period. Such mistakes do not affect the central concerns of the book, but readers should still be wary. Footnotes are few, which adds to the readability of the text, but also hinders the reader's further pursuit of particular topics and anecdotes. This is partly rem- edied by the division of the bibliography into sections by chapter, with repetition where needed. Avrin's bibliography is generally a good guide to further study, although there are some surprising omissions, e.g., Bernhard Bischoff's Palaographie des romischen Altertums und abendlandischen Mittelalters (now avail- able in English) and Arthur E. Gordon's Illustrated Introduction to Latin Epigraphy. Avrin has also made a practice of citing only first editions, although some (e.g., those of Sir Eric Turner on papyrology) have been superseded by substantially revised and expanded later ones. As befits a work on the book arts, Scribes, Script, and Books is handsomely produced. The type is clear and attractive, the mar- gins generous, and the binding appealing and functional. Typographical errors are few and minor. The illustrations are both numerous and well chosen; it is a pity that none could be printed in color, espe- cially for the chapters on manuscript illumination and the Islamic book. Avrin's work is a remarkably readable synthesis of the vast scholarly literature on the development of the book in the Near East and Europe before Gutenberg. It will provide a real service to the non- specialist reader and student and will undoubtedly be widely used as a basic text in book history courses.-Fred W. Jenkins, University of Dayton, Ohio. ~llittvie SIXTH NATIONAL CONFERENCE For More Information: 50 East Huron Street Chicago, IL 60611-2795 Toll Free 1-800-545-2433 Ext. 2516 AssociATION OF COLLEGE & RESEARCH LIBRARIES A DIVISION OF THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION