Leaf of a Writing Tablet. Culture: French. Dimensions: Overall: 4 9/16 x 3 1/16 x 3/16 in. (11.7 x 7.8 x 0.6 cm). Date: 14th century.It is probable that this leaf from a writing tablet, as with many extant writing tablets, was intended for letter writing. The decoration of the exterior of many of these ivory tablets, carved with scenes of courtship and chivalric romances, suggests that they were used by noble men and women for love poems or secret letters. Though this particular tablet is its fragmentary state, complete tablets are known. A similar, complete writing box was designed to hold not only the leaves, but also the stylus and a sunken receptacle for wax. Writing tablets of wood, metal, or ivory, which had been in use from the days of ancient Egypt, were not medieval inventions. They were, however, important writing implements in a period when paper and parchment were both scarce and expensive. The value of the writing tablets lay in their reusable character. A brief message