SC - info on period ink formulae

[Varju at aol.com]

Now that I've had a moment to look through my books here's what I can recall 
about period ink making. . .

I think _On divers arts_ by Theopolis may have a recipe and Daniel V. 
Thompson covers the basic technique in _The Materials and Techniques of 
Medieval Painting_ in his discussion on black paints.

The basic idea for may period inks is to rely on the natural chemical 
reaction between the tannin found in oak galls and iron salt.  It is supposed 
to darken with age.


Noemi