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Thread: Origin of blue black

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    Senior Member Yazeh's Avatar
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    Post Origin of blue black

    Since several intriguing and passionate posts about iron gall were posted, I thought I'll add some historical context.
    This is thanks to the book I'm reading, first INK, CULTURE, WONDER, AND OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE WRITTEN WORD, by Ted Bishop and Pen, Ink, & Evidence: A Study of Writing and Writing Materials for the Penman, Collector, and Document Detective. by Joe Nickell.
    When steel nibs were created and soon replaced goose quills (in early XIX century), in order to deal with the corrosive nature of iron gall inks, ink makers added dyes to the iron gall ink, which apparently tempered its corrosiveness.
    This made the written word legible in blue before the ink oxidized and turned black. Often iron gall ink writes in a pale, pasty grey colour until the oxidization process happenes and turns into the black colour. and overtime to brown....
    I am sure many of the esteemed members with scientific background can explain it in more detail.

    Pictured here is a bottle of Stephens inks, which was established in 1834. By adding indigo dye to the mixture, of their "pure" iron gall ink, which wrote clear, it wrote blue before turning black.
    Stephens stopped producing ink in vats in 70s and one of his employees created his own business beloved by many here on this forum, ESSRI. (thanks Jens, the Swan of ink lovers.)


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