Sillybos

Sillyboi (singular ancient Greek σίλλυβος sillybos ; Latin tituli or indices ) were strips of parchment on the scrolls of antiquity , which indicated the title and author of a work.

Antique scrolls were rolled up and tightly packed lying on shelves and cupboards, but also kept standing in special containers (e.g. a capsa, see Antique Libraries ). The author and title of the work were noted on the inside of the roll, which could also be enclosed in a protective cover. In order to be able to find a desired work, the roll had to be provided with a sillybos on the upper edge, which hung visibly and gave information about the content of the roll.

Sillyboi of particularly valuable roles could be red or saffron-colored. The Sillybos is documented for the first time in the 3rd century BC. In the Latin literature Sillyboi are mentioned by Cicero and Ovid .

literature

• Horst Blanck: The book in antiquity. Beck, Munich 1992, ISBN 3-406-36686-4
• Otto Mazal: Greco-Roman Antiquity. Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, Graz 1999, ISBN 3-201-01716-7 (History of Book Culture; Vol. 1)