Nicholas Bodley skribis:

>
> On Tue, 12 Apr 2005 18:46:29 -0400, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>
> > Vellum is (etymologically) calfskin, usually denoting merely
> > a fine grade of parchment. Paper would go together with
> > papyrus (and palm leaves) as a vegetal writing surface.
>
> I well recall in engineering departments that certain varieties
> of paper, iirc used for reproducing engineering drawings,
> were commonly called "vellum". Best guess is that they were
> high-quality cellulose paper, probably treated or coated with
> some substance. Of course, this usage was derivative.

I believe it's called "vellum" because the surface of the paper
is designed to be similar in texture to the surface of vellum.

--Ph. D.