Entre traditions et mutations : quelques observations à propos des idiosyncrasies

Abstract

Palaeography is based on the careful and comparative study of writings with the purpose to identify changes in forms. This process determines a standard which could allow to date documents. But transgressions are numerous and cannot be organised only chronologically. It is especially true for idiosyncrasies which raise other questions related to both the learning process and the social and professional relationships between scribes and workshops that are decisive to approach the present issue. An investigation of the meaning and role of this kind of singularities would help to find out how to study idiosyncrasies and to determine what they could tell us about the hieratic script itself, the expertise of scribes or the organisation of workshops.