Corrections in the VMS

[-JKP-]

I think the reason there are few corrections seen in the text is that there was a light pencil (or other easily erasable medium) version written in before the glyphs were inked.

An example of this is the fourth glyph (first word) on f16r. It looks like an EVA = e glyph. But there is a faint downstroke which would have changed it to an EVA = l glyph. The downstroke is faint green. (This would make the word more understandable to me, if not to any other readers.)

I tried to ask the experts about the possibility of an erasable precursor draft at the Washington DC Folger Library presentation, but was not called on to ask my question.

Thank you.

Don of Tallahassee

They didn't use graphite in those days. They used silverpoint or lead, neither of which is easy to erase. And how do you erase it once you've over-inked it?

I think most likely they wrote out the script on scrap parchment or wax and then copied it to the vellum and destroyed or overwrote the draft copy.