Preparations

To begin with we must know the material used in the preparation: slaked lime (calcium carbonate). Indeed the definition of parchment is: a skin treated with slaked lime which is dried in a stretched way.

The slaked lime is obtained as follows. Limestone (in Europe from France, Belgium and elsewhere) is burnt in limekilns. The slag is seperated from the quicklime. The chalk pieces are ground to a powder and taken in sealed tankers to factories where it is slaked. This is a chemical process whereby the chalk is mixed with water and becomes a temperature of around eighty five degrees Celcius. Should untreated lime come into contact with damp skin it will burn into it. The hot wet chalk is poured into large open containers and when cooled is ready for use in for example, building construction, such as in the making of cement mix.