From Judaism 101 (http://www.jewfaq.org), and another site whose URL I lost, some info on the Torah:
Torah Scrolls
The scriptures that we use in services are written on parchment scrolls. They are always hand-written, in attractive Hebrew calligraphy with “crowns” (crows-foot-like marks coming up from the upper points) on many of the letters. This style of writing is known as STA"M (an abbreviation for “Sifrei Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzot,” which is where you will see that style of writing.
The Torah is written with extreme care by a Sofer with all natural materials. The Torah is written on kosher parchment, with a quill, special ink, and several other utensils.
A Sofer is a scribe. Because only a sofer can write a Sefer Torah, Tefillin and Mezzuzot, a Torah scribe is sometimes called Sofer S’TaM. The Hebrew root of Sofer means to count, or to tell (a story). There was a group of scholars called the Sofrim who were responsible for helping to transmit the Torah text.
Kosher Parchment (ie. parchment from a kosher animal) called Klaf must be prepared specifically for that purpose (ie. the klaf for a Torah cannot be used for Tefillin, and vice versa). The animal hide must be specially prepared by being soaked, scraped and pressed.This makes the surface able to be written on and ensures that the skin will remain soft. Several columns fit one one sheet (yeriah). It takes many sheets of parchment for a complete Torah.
The ink must be very black, durable, but not indelible. It was made originally from a mixture of soot, honey and crushed gallnuts boiled together. Today gum arabic and copper sulfate are also added.
Originally the Torah was written with a reed. Today a quill is used. The feather quill comes from a kosher bird, usually a goose or turkey. A Sofer has a special quill he uses only for God’s four letter name.
To make lines to write on, the sofer uses a thorn. There is only a line at the top of each line, and the letters are drawn as if hanging from the line. The 42 lines in a column are usually 3-5 inches long- enough room to write the longest word in the Torah (L’mishphoteihem) three times.
You are not supposed to touch the parchment on these scrolls; some say because they are too holy; some say because the parchment, made from animal skins, is a source of ritual defilement; others say because your fingers’ sweat has acids that will damage the parchment over time. Instead, you follow the text with a pointer, called a Yad. “Yad” means “hand” in Hebrew, and the pointer usually is in the shape of a hand with a pointing index finger. The scrolls are kept covered with fabric, and often ornamented with silver crowns on the handles of the scrolls and a silver breastplate on the front.
The scrolls are kept in a cabinet in the synagogue called an “ark,” as in Ark of the Covenant, not as in Noah’s Ark. The words are different and unrelated in Hebrew. The former is an acrostic of “aron kodesh,” meaning “holy cabinet,” while the latter is an English translation of the Hebrew word “teyvat” meaning “ship”.
The Torah scrolls that we read from in synagogue are unpointed text, with no vowels or musical notes, so the ability to read a passage from a scroll is a valuable skill, and usually requires substantial advance preparation (reviewing the passage in a text with points).