Medieval Manuscripts: Unveiling Microbial Histories скачать в хорошем качестве

Medieval Manuscripts: Unveiling Microbial Histories

The emerging field of "biocodicology" examines medieval manuscripts as complex biological ecosystems, not just cultural artifacts. Recent research has revealed that manuscripts host unique microbiomes that provide valuable historical information about their creation, usage, and storage conditions. DNA sequencing of microbes from parchment pages has identified distinct bacterial communities that vary according to geography, production methods, and handling patterns. These biological signatures serve as "geotags," revealing the locations where manuscripts were stored and can even indicate which pages were most frequently read, creating a biological "heat map" of historical usage. The research has practical conservation applications, with experts now adopting ecological approaches to preservation rather than attempting to eliminate all biological activity. Additionally, manuscript microbiomes have unexpectedly contributed to historical epidemiology, with some texts preserving traces of pathogens, such as Yersinia pestis, from the Black Death, offering new insights into medieval disease ecology. https://www.ihadnoclue.com/article/11...