Nmaking iron gall ink books

This binder was used very early in iron gall ink manufacture. This method was popular until the 19th century but has its roots back in the 6th century. Jetpens is accepting and shipping us orders, but due to covid19, free shipping is not available. It was the traditional ink used by master penmen during the american golden age of ornamental penmanship circa 1850 1930 and was an essential medium in the copy print process invented by james watt of steam engine fame. Old world iron gall ink is a handcrafted rich black ink prefect for copperplate, spencerian or other calligraphy arts. Water, oak gall nut, gum arabic, soot, logwood, copper sulfate or iron sulfate. Brown, 57, 73 various other sources such as pomegranate rinds, horse chestnuts, hemlock and pine bark, can be used, but they will yield less durable green toned ink, rather than the characteristic blue black of high quality iron gall inks.

Historically, scribes made this ink by extracting tannic acid from oak galls caused by gall wasp larvae on trees, mixing it with iron sulphate and binding it with gum arabic there are variations on this recipe. Its a solid performer on all types of paper ive tried it with even cheap copy paper. Iron gall inks are made from iron salts and tannic acids from plants. Iron gall ink corrosion is the result of two different degradation processes that interact and feed off each other. However, iron gall ink is unstable and can corrode over time, resulting in a weakening of the paper sheet and the formation of cracks and holes. Iron gall ink was in popular use from about the 12th century up until new technologies made it obsolete in the 19th century. The historical recipes have three basic ingredients in common. Iron gall ink damage to a medieval illuminated manuscript as a historian, i find iron gall inks both fascinating, and worrying.

Old world style iron gall ink by hugoswritingsupplies on etsy. Kwz inks iron gall inks are manufactured by hand in poland. This is the same ink used to sign the declaration of independence and to. Iron gall ink is now enjoying something of a calligraphic revival, but recipes can vary considerably. It binds the ink at the paper surface, producing a greater brilliance and deeper color. See more ideas about ink, iron and medieval manuscript. It was the standard ink formulation used in europe for the fourteenhundredyear period between the 5th and 19th centuries, remained in widespread use well into the 20th century, and is still sold today. Light in color when it was applied, the ink darkened as it oxidized to an intense purplish black. Konrad constantly improves his inks and systematically introduces minor changes to their recipe, but the basics of it has not changed significantly. I dont do calligraphy and is my first and only iron gall ink. If you havent read it, id recommend doing so before reading this post.

How to make iron gall ink inky recipes the fountain. Iron gall ig ink has been around in some form or fashion for about 2,000 years, and it has been widely used since about the fifth century. Mccafferys ink due to the chemical nature of irongall ink,mccafferys black ink will actually appear as a greyblack or greyblue when used from a new bottle. Daniel smith walnut ink mccafferys ink mccaffery penmans black ink 4oz mccaffery glossy black ink 4oz old world iron gall ink 2 oz, black walnut ink jar walnut ink crystals, 1 oz walnut ink crystals, 2 oz walnut ink crystals, 4 oz walnut ink crystals, 8 oz walnut ink crystals, 16 oz walnut drawing ink, 2. It beats all my fountain pen inks in terms of quality. Im about to be experimenting with iron gall ink, and i have so many questions relates to so many aspects of it. But theres something to be said for the artistic variety and richness of the shades of irongall ink and how it has oxidized with time.

Testing for irongall inks chemistry stack exchange. Its the darkest black color ive ever seen it looks like black soot on paper. Montblanc 146, parker 51, etc its mostly for peace of mind. This advanced professional development apd workshop will incorporate 20 years of international research in the chemistry, degradation and treatment of metallogallic inks and use this research as the basis for. The result is that blue litmus paper turned red only for the second ink. Recently we tried making iron gall inks iron gall ink is produced by the reaction of tannic acid extracted from galls, a type of growth on trees especially oak, with ferrous sulphate feso 4 this ink has been the most common type in the western world from the 9 th century until the 20 th century, but a lot of historical manuscripts written with this ink suffered. Once these areas develop cracks, they become highly sensitive to further mechanical damage. Making iron gall ink sca college of arms on the web. Because old world is an iron gall ink, it is very acidic. Heck, the dead sea scrolls were written with iron gall ink. Making the invisible visible repairs on iron gall ink. The constitution of the united states was drafted with it.

In an ink it functions as a suspension agent for the insoluble pigment particles. Old world iron gall ink 2 oz, black a very black iron gall ink. This ink is made from recipes dating back hundreds of years, using all natural ingredients. Oak galls are large, round growths commonly found on many species of oak trees. The oak galls contain galllotannic and gallic acids which were extracted by soaking the galls in water or. Iron oak gall ink was used for hundreds of years until modern archival inks arrived. To start off, most recipes call for vinegar to dissolve the ferrous iron in.

Historic manuscripts and drawings made with iron gall ink on paper often contain weak areas caused by local corrosive action of the ink. The quality of ink is perhaps the main reasons a scroll will last 2,000 years or 100 years. It penetrates the paper and solidifies due to oxidation. The range of objects that contain iron gall ink is enormous.

This is going to be a long, photoheavy article, so im not going to rehash the initial story, which has proven to be really popular. In the last 20 years or so, a tremendous amount of resources and research has been poured into understanding and treating iron gall ink corrosion. The coloring strength of iron gall ink was high and it had, depending on its manufacture, a deep blueblack, velvety tone. The ingredients list for iron gall ink is therefore fittingly mysterioussounding. It was easily made at home and it was permanent, which explains its popularity. It is a watersoluble ink made by blending ingredients derived from plants such as tea leaves wtih iron. Its only made from a few relatively inexpensive ingredients but if made in the wrong proportions it can cause a lot of damage to paper or parchment substrates. Pdf analysis of the current research into the chemistry. Old world ink is simply the best calligraphy ink you can buy.

Each etsy seller helps contribute to a global marketplace of creative goods. Ig is a permanent ink made from combining iron salts with tannic acid often extracted from oak galls. Prior to the 20th century, iron gall ink igi was the most common ink in the western world and a plethora of recipes from which to produce the dark, permanent ink can be found starting from the middle ages. In medieval europe, ink was used to write on parchment.

Last week the graduate book students learned how to make iron gall ink, a common writing ink from the middle ages through the 20th century. The recipe kwz pronounced ka veh zeh ink uses to produce iron gall was developed in the first half of 20. Even for modern iron gall inks, salix and scabiosa are only irongall lite, if you will, so they should be relatively safe. I know this is a subject of controversy surrounding many inks and as a newbie, so far i have not owned any iron gall inks i dont use black ink. A while back, i published a post describing my experiences with iron gall ink and how one specific ink ate a pen and a spare nib. I would only put iron gall ink in a pen whose nib unit can be easily taken apart for cleaning eg. It was a big hit at iampeth and is highly recommended by michael sull as a dense black ink for pointed pen work. These galls can then be harvested, soaked in water and mixed with iron salts to produce a fine ink. Iron gall ink was a versatile black ink, more permanent than carbon ink, which was used for centuries but which can cause severe paper degradation including haloing, strikethough and. Using a dip pen, paint brush, or quill pen and some paper perhaps in your handsewn book. Iron gall ink is found on manuscripts, music scores, drawings, letters, maps, and official documents such as wills, bookkeeping records, logs, real estate.

So i guess the dubious ink weather has not irongall or has little quantity. The declaration of independence and the hand of time. At etsy, we pride ourselves on our global community of sellers. After a few weeks or so the ink will considerably darken,and a black precipitate of the ink will collect in the bottle. Another way to apply ink to a writing surface is the use of a quill pen. Ive been a fountain pen user since 1986 and recently acquired a dip pen a couple of weeks ago. There are many recipes for this ink and many laws the scribe. When first applied the ink is a light brown or sepia color, but as it dries it turns purplishblack. The observed bands have been ascribed to iron gall ink peaks at 558 and 1485 cm. The canadian conservation institute is pleased to host the iron gall ink. Discover the unique items that hugoswritingsupplies creates. Iron gall ink, the kind typically used in matlacks day, included tannic acid from oak galls, iron from nails or iron scraps, a binder often gum arabic, and sometimes a colorant. Old world iron gall is a very black ink for pointed pen work.

Irongall ink was used for about 1400 years and only lost favor in the mid 1800s when india ink replaced it because it was cheaper and easier to make and produced a more consistent, longer lasting black. Iron gall inks have a long history as they were the most commonly used inks in medieval europe and remain popular to this day. No matter what youre looking for or where you are in the world, our global marketplace of sellers can help you find unique and affordable options. A historical form of ink dating back to the roman empire, iron gall inks offer great water resistance and dramatic shading. Lamy 2000, any twsbi, parker sonnet, etc and keep them away from pens much harder to dissemble eg. By supporting hugoswritingsupplies, youre supporting a small business, and, in turn, etsy. Ultimately, this leads to loss of valuable fragments. Good for work that will be reproduced as it is quite dark. Page 1 of 2 how to make iron gall ink posted in inky recipes. Iron gall ink was made from, well, oak galls galls being, according to uni of kentucky entomologists, irregular plant growths which are stimulated by the reaction between plant hormones and powerful growth regulating chemicals produced by some insects. He would have dipped his quill pen into iron gall ink, the kind typically used in matlacks day.