Re: Ink and paper analysis?

[reeds@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Jim Reeds)]

On Mar 22, 17:46, diane.cousteau wrote:


>               I have a few more questions for the group, if you don't mind.
> Jacques Guy explained  to me that there had been no analysis of the ink or
> vellum...well, what would it take to get it done? Is it a matter of Yale's
> authorization? Can it be worked at?

Two comments:

1. ``Paper'' is the wrong word.  Vellum is animal skin, a kind of
parchment;  paper is a plant product.  (Vélin, parchemin might be
the French equivalents?)

2. There are two reasons why such analyses have not been made.
First, cost.  Someone has to pay for the work.  Second, and
ultimately more important, such analyses are usually done to
answer particular questions.  The particular analysis done
depends on the particular questions asked.  Not all possible
questions are answerable by such means.   Dating of parchment,
for instance,  cannot be reliably done by C-14 analysis, someone
told us early on. 

I am sure that if someone got funding for a physical or chemical
analysis of the VMS, and had a precise plan of investigation,
including cooperation of a laboratory used to such work, that
there would be little problem about permissions.

-- 
Jim Reeds, AT&T Labs - Research
Shannon Laboratory, Room C229, Building 103
180 Park Avenue, Florham Park, NJ 07932-0971, USA

reeds@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, phone: +1 973 360 8414, fax: +1 973 360 8178