A scroll is a roll of parchment, papyrus, or paper which has been written upon. They were used in ancient civilizations before the codex or bound book was invented in the first century. The linear access of the scroll meant that it was easy to confuse the scribes; for example, there are versions of the EgyptianBook of the Dead with multiple, repeated sections.
Scrolls are still used today in some religious contexts; in Jewish and many other cultures, a scroll is read with one roll to the left and one roll to the right, and with columns of text running from top to bottom. Quality control of a Jewish Torah is maintained by counting the number of characters, and disposing of the faulty versions, before they can be used.
Some other cultures use scrolls with one roll at the top and one at the bottom, called a hanging scroll, without any obvious division of the text into columns. In some scroll-using cultures painted illustrations ran above the columns of text, either in a continuous band or broken into scenes above either a single or double-column of text. Typically, each end of a scroll is attached to a rod or baton for support and to protect from damage during storage and use.
Scrolls are still used today in some religious contexts; in Jewish and many other cultures, a scroll is read with one roll to the left and one roll to the right, and with columns of text running from top to bottom.
When we think of scrolls we often think about messages of great importance placed on bits of rolled-up papyrus to be found as humanity needs the information, as if it were part of their initiation into awareness.
For cutting the parchment, the scribe was given a sharp, curved knife (novacula or rasorium) and a ruler (regula,linula, norma, canon, or præductale).
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