Birch bark manuscript
document written on pieces of the inner layer of birch bark
Birch bark manuscripts are documents written on pieces of the inner layer of birch bark, which was commonly used for writing before the mass production of paper. Evidence of birch bark for writing goes back many centuries and appears in various cultures.
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Quotes
edit- Sringaverapura is a site on the bank of the Ganga, not far upstream of Allahabad. Birch leaf fragments have been identified in its Black-and-Red Ware level dated around 800 BC at the site. The nearest source of birch leaf (Betula utilis or bhurja patra) is the Himalayas, possibly Garhwal hills. What is the point in importing these leaves to Srinagaverapura unless they were used for writing? This is certainly a piece of hard circumstantial evidence in favour of pre-Asokan existence of writing in early historic India.
- Dilip K. Chakrabarti, Review of K. Rajan, Early Writing System: A Journey from Graffiti to Brahmi. DOI: 10.1177/0376983617694685
