Illumination and Its Development in the Present Day

"Illumination and Its Development in the Present Day" by Sidney Farnsworth is a manual from the early 1900s centered on the art of illumination. Created for students, it combines history with useful methods for learning this art. Farnsworth stresses how important it is to understand calligraphy as a start to illumination, showing how it changed from old writing to today’s uses. At the beginning, Farnsworth gives an overview of illumination, including where it started, how ancient writing grew, and why writing and decoration are connected. The book talks about different tools and things used for writing throughout time, getting ready to deeply explore the ways to make illuminated papers in modern times. Farnsworth hopes to get students excited about the skill of illumination and wants them to learn its key ideas, so that this old art stays important and grows in today's world.