Paper before print the history and impact of paper in the Islamic world Jonathan M. Bloom.

Includes bibliographical references and index. Contents: 1. The invention of paper -- Clay tablets and papyrus rolls -- Wooden tablets and parchment codices -- Bamboo strips and silk cloth -- The invention of paper -- The diffusion of paper -- The introduction of paper in the Islamic lands -- 2. The spread of papermaking across the Islamic lands -- Iraq -- Syria -- Iran and Central Asia -- Egypt -- The Maghrib (North Africa and Spain) -- 3. Paper and books -- The Koran and oral culture -- Written Arabic -- An explosion of books -- Collections and libraries -- A culture of writing -- ch. 4. Paper and systems of notation -- Mathematics -- Commerce -- Cartography -- Music, genealogy, and battle plans -- 5. Paper and the visual arts -- Before the thirteenth century -- From the thirteenth century -- 6. The transfer of paper and papermaking to Christian Europe -- Byzantium -- spain -- Italy -- Europe North of the Alps -- 7. Paper after print.