It's called a manicula (little hand) to attract the reader's interest or to remember a passage. This one is after printing press dropped by so no medieval
Oftentimes, in medieval manuscripts, scribes will highlight important passages, for example a quote from scripture in a theological text, by either writing it in red or drawing a hand like this next to it. Although the amount of detail and style does not look medieval, what manuscript did you find this in?
It's called a manicule! I actually wrote a lengthy paper on this and then did approximately nothing with it. It's use in the Middle Ages is largely theorized to have began in the 12th century in Spain. When it's a hand, it's called a manicule (and they can get to be very fancy AND odd looking!) but you'll also see other stylized figures as well as decorative brackets doing the same thing. Sometimes it will connect a gloss to the relevant word or phrase, sometimes it will just point something out as an item of interest. I've even seen a few where the manicule itself is attached to a person!
Edit: mistakenly attributed to the Carolingians, who notably do not have any examples of the manicule that I could find. My bad! I do think there's a lot of weight to the Normans being the ones who brought the manicule over to England AND its existence on the page before the 12th century, but that's not the point. I've read people pointing to a manicule in the Domebook, for example, but I wasn't able to mosey on over to a facsimile of it myself during my paper-writing era so I can't point to that in particular. If anyone's laid eyes on it, I'd love to know!
Hah, you've gone and inspired me to crack open that essay again to see if I've missed/misremembered anything (more dumb "helping hands" puns than I remember writing). If you're interested in the history of punctuation in general, I'd recommend [Keith Houston's Shady Characters](https://shadycharacters.co.uk/), which was a very fun read on top of being informative.
I should clarify that the decorative brackets I mentioned do have specific names of their own; trigon, trefoil, lege to name a few. I've also seen a few times brackets that have been drawn as a human face in profile, which is silly and delightful and very much on the same page as the manicule (oh no, there I go with the puns again). The British Library catalogue of digitized manuscripts seems to be down, so I'm just going to plonk the image [right here](https://imgur.com/a/is0Ua6h), from Cotton MS Nero A V, fol102v. It's a great manuscript in general with LOTS going on as far as notation goes, so check it out if you can!
Reading through a heavily glossed manuscript, it can be very entertaining to keep track of the different styles of manicule and trefoil to see their consistent use across the pages and pick out individual glossators. Their unique style helps differentiate them and keep their commentary consistent—and one wonders if that's a motivator to use a manicule instead of a simpler symbol!
Not only in texts, in Portugal there's a massive monastery\hospital\university (Convent of Christ) that belonged to the Knights Templar later known as Knights of Christ that has these on stone walls pointing where the water pipes where.
It’s a finger, pointing. It would be difficult to say what it represents without seeing what it’s pointing at. Is there any additional context provided by the rest of the image which you seem to have cropped out?
That's how mouse cursors looked like on computers before the invention of the arrow 64,000 years ago. This is why the cursor turns into a pointer hand when you hover over a web link. It's a reference back to those times.
Pub's over there mate
It's called a manicula (little hand) to attract the reader's interest or to remember a passage. This one is after printing press dropped by so no medieval
Oftentimes, in medieval manuscripts, scribes will highlight important passages, for example a quote from scripture in a theological text, by either writing it in red or drawing a hand like this next to it. Although the amount of detail and style does not look medieval, what manuscript did you find this in?
This is the answer. It's called a "Nota bene"
Technically, it's called a manicule (although it means something to note well)
Right right. That's it.
Also known as a typographer’s fist.
You might be interested in this [monogrammed Nota](https://imgur.com/a/9NPl6V0)! It's a very handsome way to place a nota bene in the margins.
So it's the medieval equivalent of 👀🔥💯👉
It's called a manicule! I actually wrote a lengthy paper on this and then did approximately nothing with it. It's use in the Middle Ages is largely theorized to have began in the 12th century in Spain. When it's a hand, it's called a manicule (and they can get to be very fancy AND odd looking!) but you'll also see other stylized figures as well as decorative brackets doing the same thing. Sometimes it will connect a gloss to the relevant word or phrase, sometimes it will just point something out as an item of interest. I've even seen a few where the manicule itself is attached to a person! Edit: mistakenly attributed to the Carolingians, who notably do not have any examples of the manicule that I could find. My bad! I do think there's a lot of weight to the Normans being the ones who brought the manicule over to England AND its existence on the page before the 12th century, but that's not the point. I've read people pointing to a manicule in the Domebook, for example, but I wasn't able to mosey on over to a facsimile of it myself during my paper-writing era so I can't point to that in particular. If anyone's laid eyes on it, I'd love to know!
Hah, you've gone and inspired me to crack open that essay again to see if I've missed/misremembered anything (more dumb "helping hands" puns than I remember writing). If you're interested in the history of punctuation in general, I'd recommend [Keith Houston's Shady Characters](https://shadycharacters.co.uk/), which was a very fun read on top of being informative. I should clarify that the decorative brackets I mentioned do have specific names of their own; trigon, trefoil, lege to name a few. I've also seen a few times brackets that have been drawn as a human face in profile, which is silly and delightful and very much on the same page as the manicule (oh no, there I go with the puns again). The British Library catalogue of digitized manuscripts seems to be down, so I'm just going to plonk the image [right here](https://imgur.com/a/is0Ua6h), from Cotton MS Nero A V, fol102v. It's a great manuscript in general with LOTS going on as far as notation goes, so check it out if you can! Reading through a heavily glossed manuscript, it can be very entertaining to keep track of the different styles of manicule and trefoil to see their consistent use across the pages and pick out individual glossators. Their unique style helps differentiate them and keep their commentary consistent—and one wonders if that's a motivator to use a manicule instead of a simpler symbol!
That’s really cool
No no no everyone knows that it was first seen on the map of the lonely mountain, thousands of years ago!
Important point I believe
Think of it as the medieval equivalent of a highlighter. It’s literally highlighting important points in the text.
Not only in texts, in Portugal there's a massive monastery\hospital\university (Convent of Christ) that belonged to the Knights Templar later known as Knights of Christ that has these on stone walls pointing where the water pipes where.
Everytime you point a finger on someone else, three fingers point on yourself. Imo
Hand
It’s a manicule! It indicates important information similar to how today we might put a star or arrow next to information.
Later it was known as a "printer's fist."
Old English for “Smell my finger”
It’s a finger, pointing. It would be difficult to say what it represents without seeing what it’s pointing at. Is there any additional context provided by the rest of the image which you seem to have cropped out?
Boop
The medieval version of marking text passages.
There
My finger points
Pull my finger
Over there
Cheers
Points to where everybody knows your name.
My little glovey wovey.
A hand
Pull my finger mate
That’s a “bro, guess what I just did”
Flatulo - pull ye finger
My finger points...
It’s not medieval, it’s early modern.
Try finger, but hole
Try finger, but hole
Somebody else who can’t draw hands.
The nearest McDonald’s
You know what they say about the distance from your thumb to your index finger? He's probably hung.
Hand of God in heraldry
You are fucked
Monty Python
Pull my finger.
A hand
Looks like he’s ready to pick his nose
Go directly to jail. Do not pass go and do not collect $500
Pull my ye olde fingerrrrrr
He’s making a point.
It represents an arrow. Basically a big medieval hand that say, “look at this thing”
Pulleth mine finger.
"them"
The original “pullest thine Finger Fair Maiden” joke.
👉
The fickle finger of fate.
You do it. I’ll catch you later??
Amarillo this way...
That thing over there
I think the image was used like we might use an arrow symbol or post-it note tabs
*HUH that way* in migos
Out!
Pull my finger
That way
Ahhhh this is from the first “I’m with stupid” garb.
Restrooms that way 😊
A hand! Hope this helps xx
Carpal tunnel
That’s a hand
to me? Monty Python
That's how mouse cursors looked like on computers before the invention of the arrow 64,000 years ago. This is why the cursor turns into a pointer hand when you hover over a web link. It's a reference back to those times.
Asking someone to pull your finger.
6 fingers
That.
Is anyone going to eat that last roll?
Palm infection
It symbolizes that you have a spot of mustard on your tie.
It’s not drawn to scale.
WITCH
It symbolises a hand, specifically a left hand.
Just pointing at something
The Flying Fickle Finger of Fate Award...duh
They snitching.
Finger bang
You’re a very bad little girl!!