LĪBELLA, a small Roman silver coin, which existed in the early age of the city. The name was retained later as a proverbial expression for a very small value. The libella was equal in value to the old full-weight as; and it seems most probable that the coin ceased being struck at the time of the reduction of the as, on account of the inconveniently small size which it would have assumed. The libella was subdivided into the sembella, its half, and the teruncius, its quarter. Cicero uses these words to express fractions of an estate, with reference to the denarius as the unit, the libella signifying 1-10th, and the teruncius 1-40th of the whole.
LĬBELLUS, the diminutive form of liber, signifies properly a little book. It was distinguished from other kinds of writings, by being written like our books by pages, whereas other writings were written transversa charta. It was used by the Romans as a technical term in the following cases:—1. Libelli accusatorum or accusatorii, the written accusations which in some cases a plaintiff, after having received the permission to bring an action against a person, drew up, signed, and sent to the judicial authorities. 2. Libelli famosi, libels or pasquinades, intended to injure the character of persons. A law of the Twelve Tables inflicted very severe punishments on those who composed defamatory writings. 3. Libellus memorialis, a pocket or memorandum book. 4. Libellus is used by the Roman jurists as equivalent to Oratio Principis. 5. The word libellus was also applied to a variety of writings, which in most cases probably consisted of one page only; such as short letters, advertisements, &c.
Ancient Writing Materials. (From a Painting at Herculaneum.)
LĬBER (βιβλίον), a book. The most common material on which books were written by the Greeks and Romans, was the thin coats or rind (liber, whence the Latin name for a book) of the Egyptian papyrus. This plant was called by the Egyptians Byblos (βύβλος), whence the Greeks derived their name for a book (βιβλίον). The papyrus-tree grows in swamps to the height of ten feet and more, and paper (charta) was prepared from the thin coats or pellicles which surround the plant. Next to the papyrus, parchment (membrana) was the most common material for writing upon. It is said to have been invented by Eumenes II. king of Pergamus, in consequence of the prohibition of the export of papyrus from Egypt by Ptolemy Epiphanes. It is probable, however, that Eumenes introduced only some improvement in the manufacture of parchment, as Herodotus mentions writing on skins as common in his time, and says that the Ionians had been accustomed to give the name of skins (διφθέραι) to books. The ancients wrote usually on only one side of the paper or parchment. The back of the paper, instead of being written upon, was usually stained with saffron colour or the cedrus, which produced a yellow colour. As paper and parchment were dear, it was frequently the custom to erase or wash out writing of little importance, and to write upon the paper or parchment again, which was then called Palimpsestus (παλιμψήστος). The paper or parchment was joined together so as to form one sheet, and when the work was finished, it was rolled on a staff, whence it was called a volumen; and hence we have the expression evolvere librum. When an author divided a work into several books, it was usual to include only one book in a volume or roll, so that there was generally the same number of volumes as of books. In the papyri rolls found at Herculaneum, the stick on which the papyrus is rolled does not project from the papyrus, but is concealed by it. Usually, however, there were balls or bosses, ornamented or painted, called umbilici or cornua, which were fastened at each end of the stick and projected from the papyrus. The ends of the roll were carefully cut, polished with pumice-stone and coloured black; they were called the geminae frontes. The way in which a book was held while reading is shown in the following cut, taken from a painting at Herculaneum. To protect the roll from injury it was frequently put into a parchment case, which was stained with a purple colour or with the yellow of the Lutum. The title of the book (titulus, index) was written on a small strip of papyrus or parchment with a light red colour (coccum or minium).
Book held by a crowned Poet. (From a Painting at Herculaneum.)
LĪBĔRĀLĬA. [[Dionysia].]
LĪBĔRI. [[Ingenui]; [Libertus].]
LĪBERTUS, LĪBERTĪNUS. Freemen (liberi) were either Ingenui [[Ingenui]] or Libertini. Libertini were those persons who had been released from legal servitude. A manumitted slave was Libertus (that is, liberatus) with reference to his master; with reference to the class to which he belonged after manumission, he was Libertinus. Respecting the mode in which a slave was manumitted, and his status after manumission, see [Manumissio].—At Athens, a liberated slave was called ἀπελεύθερος. When manumitted he did not obtain the citizenship, but was regarded as a metoicus [[Metoicus]], and, as such, he had to pay not only the metoicion μετοίκιον but a triobolon in addition to it. His former master became his patron προστάτης to whom he owed certain duties.