From a previous Yahoo Answer by Mgaribay74
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Approximately 5000 years ago, an ink for blacking the raised surfaces of pictures and texts carved in stone was developed in China. This early ink was a mixture of soot from pine smoke, lamp oil, and gelatin from animal skins and musk. Other early cultures also developed many colors of ink from available berries, plants and minerals.
In an article for the Christian Science Monitor, Sharon J. Huntington describes these other historical inks:
About 1,600 years ago, a popular ink recipe was created. The recipe was used for centuries. Iron "salts," such as ferrous sulfate (made by treating iron with sulfuric acid), was mixed with tannin from gallnuts (they grow on trees) and a thickener. When first put to paper, this ink is bluish-black. Over time it fades to a dull brown.
Scribes in medieval Europe (about AD 800 to 1500) wrote on sheepskin parchment. One 12th century ink recipe called for hawthorn branches to be cut in the spring and left to dry. Then the bark was pounded from the branches and soaked in water for eight days. The water was boiled until it thickened and turned black. Wine was added during boiling. The ink was poured into special bags and hung in the sun. Once dried, the mixture was mixed with wine and iron salt over a fire to make the final ink.
In the 15th century, a new type of ink had to be developed in Europe for the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg. Two types of ink were prevalent at the time: the Greek and Roman writing ink (soot, glue, and water) and the 12th century variety composed of ferrous sulfate, gall, gum, and water.[1] Neither of these handwriting inks could adhere to printing surfaces without creating blurs. Eventually an oily, varnish-like ink made of soot, turpentine, and walnut oil was created specifically for the printing press.
An ink is a liquid containing various pigments and/or dyes used for coloring a surface to produce an image or text. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen or brush or quill. Thicker inks, in paste form, are used extensively in letterpress and lithographic printing.
Ink is a complex medium, comprising solvents, pigments, dyes, resins, lubricants, solubilizers, particulate matter, fluorescers, and other materials. The components of inks serve many purposes; the ink’s vehicle, colorants, and other additives are used to control flow, thickness, and appearance of the ink when dry.
Early varieties include Egyptian ink, various natural dyes made from metals, the husk or outer covering of beans or seeds, and sea creatures like the squid (known as sepia). India ink is black and originated in Asia. Iron gall ink was used by many of the old masters for drawing. Walnut ink is erroneously thought to have also been used by old masters, however, there is no proof of this. Walnut Inks, if they were used, would have faded fairly quickly and would therefore be unsuitable.
4 weeks ago
Source(s):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ink