Palm Leaves

Until commercially produced paper
became readily available, palm leaves
were the most common writing medium
in traditional India. The palm leaves
were cut into narrow strips held together
by a cord (sutra) running through a hole
punched in the middle of the leaf. Palm
leaf books usually had a top and bottom
made from strips of wood, to protect the
leaves, and these covers were often
ornately decorated. The fragile nature of
these palm leaves made regular copying
necessary to preserve manuscripts, even
though such frequent copying generally
introduced errors. If left untended, the
life span of a manuscript was at most
fifty years, due to the deteriorations
caused by the climate and the damage
from a species of termite known as
“white ants,” which fed on palm leaves.
See also pustaka.