The invention of 'Ink' (Gillian)

INK.

Ink is a coloured liquid used in writing, drawing or printing. It is comprised of two components, a vehicle (carrier) and a colourant or pigment. The Ancient Egyptians  and the Chinese, both developed ink at approximately the same time around 2500 B.C.E.

 The Egyptians used fine particles of carbon called lampblack (soot) for the colourant , and vegetable gums or glues as the vehicles.  

It is reported that in China at roughly the same time, soot from pine wood was combined with lamp oil, this was then mixed with gelatine obtained from the skin of a donkey. Musk was added to make the mixture fragrant. This mixture could be moulded into dry sticks or blocks, which could be mixed with water for use. Ink brought from China or Japan in such dry form came to be known as 'Chinese ink' or 'Indian ink'. These names are still used for similar preparations today.

By 1200 B.C.E ink preparation was developed further by the addition of natural dyes. Colours were obtained from various minerals and plants like berries. Iron salts were added in order to provide a more stable ink.

In 1772 the first patent for coloured ink was granted in England. It was not until the seventeenth century that Europeans made ink with a mixture of tannic acid from tree bark and iron salt. This recipe formed the basis for the blue and black inks used today.

Today (6th Feb) during our Science class in the woods, we 'went back to basics' and made our own ink using nutgalls. Using a very simple recipe, the nutgalls were crushed, mixed with water and boiled. Boiling released gallic acid from the nutgalls. Ferrous sulphate (fixative) was then added and the lovely black ink was poured off. Gum arabic can then be added to thicken the mixture. We do plan to try out this ink next week using our authentic feather pens!!

Here are two other simple recipes that you can try at home to make your own ink.


BLACK INK RECIPE
1/2 tsp lamp black (which you can buy or make by holding a plate over a candle and collecting the soot)
1 egg yolk
1 tsp gum arabic
1/2 cup honey

Mix together the egg yolk, gum arabic and honey. Stir in the lamp black. This will produce a thick paste which you can store in a sealed container. To use the ink, mix this paste with a small amount of water to achieve the desired consistency.


A TRADITIONAL INK RECIPE.
Take a quantity of albumen (egg white) and mix thoroughly with soot.
Add honey and mix into a smooth paste.
The ink is now ready to use.

Sources:

http://www.oxfordreference.com/


http://varenya.hubpages.com/hub/Ink-short-history