Paper and Ink Don't Always Mix

Perspectives from The Artist's Road

Document Corrosion Caused from Iron Gall Ink

We sometimes take for granted the abundance of professional tools we have at our disposal for making art. However, understanding the history and nature of some of the materials we use for mark-making can inform our art. One of our most important and basic is the ink that artists have used for drawing.

The two most common inks used throughout history were those based from carbon and those from iron gall. Carbon inks made from charcoal or burnt bone created the blacks in the oldest known cave paintings. Although carbon ink is chemically stable, it is not the most permanent when used on paper. Carbon on paper can easily smudge and be wiped off, particularly in humid conditions.

The discovery of how to make iron gall ink changed everything. The earliest recipes for oak gall ink come from Pliny the Elder (23 - 79 A.D.). Mixing vitriol, a.k.a. iron sulfate (a naturally occurring solution) with a fermented solution made…