Parchment

Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words

1: Μεμβράνα (Strong'S #3200 — Noun Feminine — membrana — mem-bran'-ah )

is a Latin word, properly an adjective, from membrum, "a limb," but denoting "skin, parchment." The Eng. word "parchment" is a form of pergamena, an adjective signifying "of Pergamum," the city in Asia Minor where "parchment" was either invented or brought into use. The word membrana is found in 2 Timothy 4:13 , where Timothy is asked to bring to the Apostle "the books, especially the parchments." The writing material was prepared from the skin of the sheep or goat. The skins were first soaked in lime for the purpose of removing the hair, and then shaved, washed, dried, stretched and ground or smoothed with fine chalk or lime and pumice stone. The finest kind is called "vellum," and is made from the skins of calves or kids.

King James Dictionary

P`ARCHMENT, L. pergamena purgo The skin of a sheep or goat dressed or prepared and rendered fit for writing on. This is done by separating all the flesh and hair, rubbing the skin with pumice stone, and reducing its thickness with a sharp instrument. Vellum is made of the skins of abortive or very young calves.

Webster's Dictionary

(1): (n.) The skin of a lamb, sheep, goat, young calf, or other animal, prepared for writing on. See Vellum.

(2): (n.) The envelope of the coffee grains, inside the pulp.

Morrish Bible Dictionary

A thin skin prepared for receiving writing. It is much more durable than papyrus. The great majority of the early copies of the scriptures that are extant are on parchment and have thus been preserved to us. 2 Timothy 4:13 .

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Parchment. See Writing.

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

PARCHMENT. See Peroamum, Writing, § 6 .

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

See Writing.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

2 Timothy 4:13

Holman Bible Dictionary

Writing

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

See BOOK.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

is the rendering in the A.V. at 2 Timothy 4:13 of the Greek μεμβράνα, a skin, from which the English membrane is derived. The apostle Paul in this passage directs Timothy to bring with him to Rome, whither he charges him to repair speedily, certain things, "but especially the parchments;" what these parchments were to which so much importance seems to be attached can only at this time be matter of conjecture.

Parchment is prepared from the skins of animals, generally sheep, in an untanned state. It "is one of the oldest inventions of writing materials, and was known at least as early as 500 years B.C. Herodotus speaks of books written upon skins in his time. Pliny, without good grounds, places the invention as late as 196 B.C., stating that it was made at Pergamos (hence the name Pergamea, corrupted into English parchment) in the reign of Eumenius II, in consequence of Ptolemy of Egypt having prohibited the exportation of papyrus. Possibly the Pergamian invention was an improvement in the preparation of skins, which had certainly been used centuries before. The manufacture rose to great importance in Rome about a century B.C., and parchment soon became the chief material for writing on; and its use spread all over Europe, and retained its pre-eminence until the invention of paper from rags, which from its great durability proved a fortunate circumstance for literature" (Chambers). Parchment is now rarely used except for literary diplomas and such documents as are destined for special permanence. (See Writing).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

parch´ment ( μεμβράνα , membrána ( 2 Timothy 4:13 )): The word "parchment "which occurs only once (2 Timothy 4:13 ), is derived from Latin pergamena (Greek Περγαμενή , Pergamenḗ ), i.e. pertaining to Pergamum, the name of an ancient city in Asia Minor where, it is believed, parchment was first used. Parchment is made from the skins of sheep, goats or young calves. The hair and fleshy portions of the skin are removed as in tanning by first soaking in lime and then dehairing, scraping and washing. The skin is then stretched on a frame and treated with powdered chalk, or other absorptive agent, to remove the fatty substances, and is then dried. It is finally given a smooth surface by rubbing with powdered pumice. Parchment was extensively used at the time of the early Christians for scrolls, legal documents, etc., having replaced papyrus for that purpose. It was no doubt used at even a much earlier time. The roll mentioned in Jer 36 may have been of parchment. Scrolls were later replaced by codices of the same material. After the arabs introduced paper, parchment was still used for centuries for the book bindings. Diplomas printed on "sheepskins," still issued by many universities, represent the survival of an ancient use of parchment. See following article.

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

Of skins specially prepared for writing on, and is so called from a king of Pergamos, who introduced it when the export of papyrus from Egypt was stopped; the skins used are of sheep, for fine parchment or vellum, of calves, goats, and lambs; parchment for drumheads is made from calves' and asses' skins.

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

[WRITING]