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The Monastic Museum of Denmark |
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Script and the written word
The written word was an important aspect of the monastery's work to spread the Christian message. Therefore the production of books was one of its most important occupations.
One of the most significant rooms in the monastery was the library. Here the monks preserved the particularly valuable books and manuscripts that were used for scientific study. The inventory of 1554 contains the only list of books belonging to a Danish monastery that we know about and it describes which books the monks of Øm had available.
In 1554 there were 346 books and manuscripts in the library. A number which by today's standard may seem few but at that time was one Jutland's largest libraries.
The books that were produced in the monastery were furnished with a metal cover to embellish them and as a protection for the priceless book. The metal book cover on display is made of brass and has had a leather strap. The metal cover is embellished with small notches along the edges.
In the Middle Ages parchment was too expensive to be used on a daily basis and so the monks often used wax tablets. 
The wax tablets were small wooden tablets hollowed out for a layer of wax on which one could write using a style - an instrument made of metal, bone etc., sharp-pointed at one end for incising letters on a wax tablet and flat at the other for erasing what is written.
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