The new milestone in the history of books occurred perhaps during the first years of Christianity, during the circulation of information about the new religion, i.e., with the appearance of religious books. The need for the reproduction and widespread use of the Gospels as a reference book both intensified the demand for the production of manuscripts, and advanced production technologies so as to make the books easier to use and more durable: Their form was changed from rolled parchments to bound codices. With its emphasis on the practice of reading, the stature of Christianity as a main characteristic of Byzantine society is supported by the fact that about nine out of ten Byzantine manuscripts which have survived are religious in nature. Therefore, it seems inevitable that Byzantine monasteries would not only make use of a wide variety of books, but would also produce them. Was that the case?
