Calligraphy Equipment: Ink


Medieval scribes mixed their own ink. There were essentially two types. One was made from soot, water and gum resin. This was very durable, but had a tendency to clog the pen. The other kind was made from ferric salts and oak-apple juice. Such ink looks very oblique immediately after the writing, but darkens after a day or two as the iron reacts with the air. However, it fades and becomes brownish in a few hundred years. It should not be used with steel pens because it will make them rust.

Use black ink. You may write certain capitals or words in red ink (see below) - this makes the text look brighter. But the bulk of the text should be black. Some medieval manuscripts may seem to be written with a sepia (reddish brown) ink, but that's only because the once-black ink has faded. There are examples of other ink colors, e.g. silver ink on purpure-dyed parchment, but these are rare exceptions.

You can buy ink in bottles or cartridges; bottle ink is much cheaper, but if you have a fountain pen, it must have a "pump" to suck it from the bottle. Dip nibs can't use cartridges, of course. Cartridges will often fit only the brand of pens they were made for. Some mountings are standardized, but don't count on it.

Be careful when you choose your ink. Some types will harden when they dry; the ink is no longer water soluble. These inks are usually labelled "permanent". This makes the scroll less sensitive to water, but if you fill a fountain pen with hardening ink and then leave it lying for a month or two so the ink dries, it will be very difficult to clean. I have ruined many pens this way. "Water soluble" ink will remain water soluble even after it has dried. Thus, a dried-up pen can be saved. But your scroll will forever remain sensitive to moisture and can be ruined by the touch of a wet finger.

A thick, truly black ink produces beautiful letters with excellent detail. But this also means that all your little mistakes show very clearly. A beginner may find it easier to work with a somewhat thinner ink. I find Indian black a bit too thick, while Parker "Quink" is good for most purposes, even if it's a bit thin. "Pelikan Fount India" is almost perfect. Chinese black ink consists of a small stick which you rub on a special stone to get a fine powder, which you mix in water, and perhaps add a drop of gum resin. Many scribes consider this ink superior because of its ability to be opaque even when it is reasonably thin. There are two types of ink stones, Japanese (oblong like a bath tub, with slanting bottom) and Chinese (circular). Again, a matter of taste.

Beware of red ink. Most types of ready-made red ink is rather thin and will fade very quickly. One exception is Rotring Drawing Ink, the type used for technical drawings. Chinese vermillion stick ink is also durable. I don't recommend any others. You can also use red gouache thinned down to the consistency of ink, with maybe a drop of gum resin for flexibility. This works fine with dip pens, but I would hesitate to put it in a fountain pen. Indeed, you should be wary of most coloured inks, because many will fade and it is usually impossible to tell. The bottles will not bear a warning label about fading.