Unknown Maker, Gujarat

These pages from Jain religious manuscripts were made by Indian scribes during different time periods. After paper was introduced as a lower-cost writing medium in South and Southeast Asia, it gradually replaced palm leaves, but the long rectangular form of the palm leaf was preserved. Unlike the adjacent Thai manuscripts, these pages were written in ink on paper rather than incised on palm leaves. The main text, however, is still centered between two vertical lines, with room for notes on the sides, drawing from the same layout as the palm leaves. The red circles also allude to the binding of the palm leaves. [see also 2010.114.78, .79]