Here's a closer look at a typical hornbook. If you look at the very top, just before the alphabet, you'll see a small red cross. This was originally called "Christ's Cross" and children would bless themselves before beginning the alphabet. Later, the term became "crisscross", a word we now use to describe a pattern created by crossed lines.

This is the same hornbook as the one above. It's next to the type of cow's horn used to make the thin, transparent sheet that covers the alphabet and prayer.

Click here to return to NEAT BOOKS

or use the back button in your browser to return to the previous page