Mystery in 1,200-year-old medieval manuscript

Researchers have discovered secret scribbles in a medieval manuscript dating back more than 1,200 years. The hidden, inkless marks were found on the pages of a medieval book in the Oxford University library in England.

The ink-free drawing shows a person with their arms outstretched with another person raising their hand.

The sketches are almost invisible on the pages - in one case, they depict a person with their arms outstretched, reaching towards another person who holds up his hand as if to stop them.

Researchers believe that Eadburg - the manuscript's author - wrote her name to highlight passages of text - a Latin copy of the "Acts of the Apostles" made in southern England between 700 and 750 AD.

"We have now identified five instances of Eadburg's name written in full on five different pages of the manuscript. Other abbreviated forms of the name - including E, EAD and EADB - have been found in the margins of these and other pages 10 more times so far," said Jessica Hodgkinson, a PhD student in history at the University of Leicester who made the discovery.

The Secret of Scribbles

When the digital reproduction is superimposed on the original page, it shows the name "Eadburg" - an Old English female name - written there without ink.

Inkless marks—known as 'dry marks'—have been discovered in other medieval manuscripts, Hodgkinson notes, but they often consist of simple crosses to highlight sections of text.

Even more puzzling are the uninked sketches on some pages.

Scientists hope to learn more about the mysterious writings and drawings, and perhaps even about Eadburg as a person. One theory is that Eadburg was the abbess of a female religious community in the mid-eighth century.