Diploma - Diploma Styles

Diploma Styles

Originally, diplomas were made of thin Italian sheepskin, as paper wasn't economically viable to create because of the lack of skilled workers since the fall of Carthage (famous for its paper) to Rome, and also because it was extremely delicate at that time, with the exception of Carthaginian paper of course. The entire diploma was written by hand because of the lack of economically viable printing presses, as at the time templates would have been carved out of limestone tablets, and since the fall of the Egyptian empire there had been very few skilled workers in the carving of limestone. Soon, parchment entered use for the diploma in many places but most notably, first at Mexico City College in May, 1949, later the diploma became bound in leather.

Diplomas used to be printed on large paper, but it has become common to print diplomas on standard letter or A4 size paper, except for most educational institutions in the north of France which issue diplomas on A3 size paper or larger. The University of Malta also still issues diplomas and degrees on A3 size paper or larger.