26-08-2026, 10:40 PM
Paragraph initial words primarily, but not always, begin with a plain gallows (K, F, T, P) and almost never a benched gallows - but…
When a paragraph does start with a benched gallows it is most often going to be a split gallows.
Bear with my slight variation of transliteration for the peculiarities of a split gallows.
Not split:
F1r cpho
F65v cphy
F76v cphdar
F101r cphoar
Split:
F8r ctho-cthey
F8v cthod-soocth
F30v: cthscthain
F35r cthoo-r-choly-cthy
F42r stho-ofaiin-cthaihcthy
F80r: cthcthey
F86v6: ctholcthy
F90v2 cphdaithy
F100v: cthdeecthy
F102r2: cthol-dcthody
Not quite a bench:
F101r: etolctheol
F111v: psalar (not split either)
Non-bench split gallows:
F56r: Otchal-chchsty
F68r1: poeeodcthy (label)
F68r2: opol-chcthy (label)
F95v1: polteedy-ctho
F99v: oteol-socthey
The other ‘decorative’ paragraph initials where a P extends over one or more words before returning to cross the leg might also wrap those words into one highlighted segment. Of course, we may never know if they mean something at all, but I still like to think there’s more to these markers than just decoration.
When a paragraph does start with a benched gallows it is most often going to be a split gallows.
Bear with my slight variation of transliteration for the peculiarities of a split gallows.
Not split:
F1r cpho
F65v cphy
F76v cphdar
F101r cphoar
Split:
F8r ctho-cthey
F8v cthod-soocth
F30v: cthscthain
F35r cthoo-r-choly-cthy
F42r stho-ofaiin-cthaihcthy
F80r: cthcthey
F86v6: ctholcthy
F90v2 cphdaithy
F100v: cthdeecthy
F102r2: cthol-dcthody
Not quite a bench:
F101r: etolctheol
F111v: psalar (not split either)
Non-bench split gallows:
F56r: Otchal-chchsty
F68r1: poeeodcthy (label)
F68r2: opol-chcthy (label)
F95v1: polteedy-ctho
F99v: oteol-socthey
The other ‘decorative’ paragraph initials where a P extends over one or more words before returning to cross the leg might also wrap those words into one highlighted segment. Of course, we may never know if they mean something at all, but I still like to think there’s more to these markers than just decoration.