Medieval (and post-medieval) readers frequently could not resist commenting upon, highlighting or correcting the works in their codex.
Ranging from a simple nota bene (?) to marginal illustrations inspired by the textual content, the traces left behind by readers offer us fascinating insights into the reception of medieval texts as well as a variety of different impulses, both vaguely familiar and utterly bewildering.
Go to one reader comparing the texts of two German manuscripts.
Or take a look at the variety of reader interventions in the French manuscript BNF, fr. 837.
Interested in learning more about medieval texts?