A book is bound, which means it has a spine into which the pages are glued or stitched so a reader can easily turn over the pages. A traditional manuscript is made up of loose sheets of paper. Earlier manuscripts were created from palm leaves or similar material. The sheets were tied together using strings passed through holes in each sheet or folio so the reader could turn them over easily.
A manuscript is unbound but sometimes has a manuscript cover to protect it. This has two parts, one at the beginning, the other at the end. Manuscript covers are made of paper, cloth, cardboard or wood. They can be decorated and painted.
Victoria and Albert Museum. IS. 20-1978. Unknown artist. 19th century
British Library. Or. 13457. Bhāskarācārya. 1640
Gamma 453. Wellcome Trust Library. Unknown author. 1512
Victoria and Albert Museum. IS. 20-1978. Unknown artist. 19th century
Wellcome Trust Library. Gamma 3. Unknown author. 1503
Bodleian Library. Prakrit d. 4. Unknown author. 1589