[INDOLOGY] Watermarks on Manuscript Paper

[Jonathan Peterson]

Dear all; 

I’m curious about the use of watermarks on manuscript paper. I recently came across the same watermark across a few Sanskrit manuscripts. The mss seem to be fairly modern (perhaps early 19th century?), but they raised a few questions: 1) how pervasive were watermarks for paper manufacturers in South Asia? 2) about when do we start seeing them? 3) I presume them to be proprietary to particular paper makers. If they are, are there any collections or indexes of various marks for establishing the provenance of a particular ms? 

Many thanks,
Jonathan Peterson
University of Toronto