A
codex (from the
Latin caudex for "trunk of a tree" or
block of wood,
book; plural
codices) is a book constructed of a number of sheets of
paper,
vellum,
papyrus, or similar materials, with hand-written content. The book is usually bound by stacking the pages and fixing one edge, and using a cover thicker than the sheets. Some codices are continuously folded like a
concertina. The alternative to paged codex format for a long document is the continuous
scroll. Examples of folded codices include the
Maya codices. Sometimes people use the term for a book-style format, including modern printed books but excluding folded books.
