By Colin Fernandez Science Correspondent For The Daily Mail
Published: 19:00 GMT, 9 January 2019 | Updated: 23:06 GMT, 9 January 2019
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Beautiful medieval illuminated manuscripts have for centuries thought to have been the work of male scribes.
But now archaeologists have found conclusive proof that nuns were involved in producing sacred texts.
Tests on the teeth of a middle-aged female skeleton at a cemetery attached to a medieval nunnery in Germany showed flecks of a rare blue pigment on her teeth.
Beautiful medieval illuminated manuscripts have for centuries thought to have been the work of male scribes, experts say. This image shows books in the monastery museum of the Orthodox Church of Ura Kidane Mehret, Zege Peninsula, Ethiopia (stock image)
Tests on the teeth of a middle-aged female skeleton at a cemetery attached to a medieval nunnery in Germany showed flecks of a rare blue pigment on her teeth, suggesting she was a scribe. This is dental calculus on the lower jaw a medieval woman entrapped lapis lazuli pigment
Scientific detective work reveals that the blue colour - ultramarine, made from the semi-precious stone lapis lazuli - indicates she must have been involved in painting the holy books, and licked the end of her paintbrush when using the rare pigment.
The discovery shows women
