ABSTRACT
The systems developed by Miecyslaw Wallis and John Sparrow for the classification of inscriptions do however provide sets of descriptive terms which may usefully be applied to scroll-texts. The significance of the text is conveyed not only through the reception of its individual words and phrases and by the recognition of its unique Gospel source, but also by its appearance on the surface of the scroll. Although scroll and text contribute equally to the impact of the text-scroll, the classificatory system developed by Wallis makes no acknowledgement of such interdependence. While the miniatures are all workshop products of limited aesthetic significance, they share one feature of potential art historical interest. The significance of text-scrolls as visual signs and carriers of meaning lies as much in their impact as formal compositional elements as in the content and arrangement of the Latin words on their surfaces.
