Forty Centuries of Ink: Or, A chronological narrative concerning ink and its backgrounds, introducing incidental observations and deductions, parallels of time and color phenomena, bibliography, chemistry, poetical effusions, citations, anecdotes and curiosa together with some evidence respecting the evanescent character of most inks of to-day and an epitome of chemico-legal ink.Carvalho, David Nunes
History
Forty Centuries of Ink: Or, A chronological narrative concerning ink and its backgrounds, introducing incidental observations and deductions, parallels of time and color phenomena, bibliography, chemistry, poetical effusions, citations, anecdotes and curiosa together with some evidence respecting the evanescent character of most inks of to-day and an epitome of chemico-legal ink.
Carvalho, David Nunes
Ink
experiment whether other dark substances could be
added to inks to impart greater durability to writings
made with them, and at the same time prevent
those chemical changes which were the cause of ordinary
inks fading. After experimenting with various
substances, and among others with Prussian
blue and indigo dissolved in various ways, he found
the sulphate of indigo to fulfil all the required
conditions and, when added in the proper proportion
to a tanno-gallate of iron ink, it yielded an ink
which is agreeable to write with, which flows freely
from the pen and does not clog it; which never
moulds, which, when it dries on the paper, becomes
of an intense pure black, and which does not fade
or change its color however long kept. The author
pointed out the proper proportions for securing those
properties, and showed that the smallest quantity
of the sulphate of indigo which could be used for
this purpose was eight ounces for every gallon of
ink. The author stated that the ink he preferred
for his own use was composed of twelve ounces of
gall, eight ounces of sulphate of indigo, eight
ounces of copperas, a few cloves, and four or
six ounces of gum arabic, for a gallon of ink.
It was shown that immersing iron wire or filings
in these inks destroyed ordinary inks. He
therefore recommended that all legal deeds or
documents should be written with quill pens, as the
contact of steel invariably destroys more or less
the durability of every ink. The author concluded
his paper with a few remarks on copying inks and
indelible inks, showing that a good copying ink has
yet to be sought for, and that indelible inks, which
will resist the pencilings and washings of the chemist
and the forger, need never be looked for."
Professor Leonhardi, of Dresden, who had given much
attention to the subject of inks, introduced in 1855
what he termed a NEW ink, and named it "alizarine
ink," alizarin being a product obtained from the madder
root, which he employed for "added" color in a
tanno-gallate of iron solution. It possessed some
merit due to its fluidity, and for a time was quite popular,
but gradually gave place to the so-called chemical
writing fluids; it is now obsolete.
Champour and Malepeyre, Paris, 1856, issued a
joint manual, "Fabrication des Encres," devoted almost
exclusively to the manufacture of inks and compiles
many old "gall" and other ink formulas.
In 1856 Dr. Chilton of New York City published
the results of ink experiments which he had made.
The accompanying extracts are taken from the local
press of the month of April of that year:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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