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The History of Writing Tools
Writing tools are essential to written communication. A person is not able to write without the proper writing
tools. However, many people don’t realize that writing tools did not just pop into existence; writing tools have a
long history. Writing tools have helped societies write their history and bring civilizations to life. The history
of writing tools begins with the cave man that invented the sharpened-stone, which was later developed into the
first writing tool. Cave men used these instruments to scratch pictures onto the walls of cave dwellings. The
drawings were said to represent events in the daily life of the cave men, such as the planting of crops and hunting
victories. Clay was later discovered, which made portable records possible, and many merchants of the time used
clay token with pictographs to record the quantities of materials being traded and shipped.
The Greeks developed the earliest form of pen and paper. They used the writing stylus, which could be made of
metal, bone, or ivory, to make marks on wax-coated tablets. The tablets used by the Greeks were made in hinged
pairs that were closed to protect the scribe’s notes. Cadmus was a Greek scholar who seemingly invented the written
letter, which is a text message on paper sent from one individual to another. The written letter proved to be a
major event in the history of writing tools, and was the starting point for the development of ink.
“Indian Ink” was developed by the ancient Chinese society, and perfected for writing. The ink was originally
designed for blacking the surfaces of raised stone-carved hieroglyphics, but was later used for writing. This early
ink was made of a mixture of soot from pine smoke and lamp oil mixed with the gelatin of donkey skin and musk. By
the year 1200 B.C. the ink had become common as a writing tool. Inks were also developed by other cultures, who
used natural dyes and colors derived from berries, plants, and minerals to create them. The different colors of
inks had ritual meanings attached to each color in early writings.
In the history of writing tools the development of ink paralleled the introduction of paper. Early cultures such as
the Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, and Hebrews used papyrus and parchment paper to write on. Romans invented a reed-pen
for parchment and ink, from the hollow tubular-stems of marsh grass and the jointed bamboo plant. The bamboo stems
were converted into writing tools that resemble the fountain pen. The plant was cut at one end into the form of a
pen point, and ink filled the stem, by squeezing the reed, writers could force the ink from the point and write on
parchment paper. The early forms of ink and paper were great developments in the history writing tools, but were
often unstable.
A stable form of ink was developed in 400 A.D., which was a composite of iron-salts, nutgalls, and gum. The ink was
seen as having a bluish-black hue when applied to paper, but quickly becoming a darker black color, and fading
after years and appearing as a dull brown color. The Chinese created a wood-fiber paper in 105 A.D., but it was not
known to other cultures until 700 A.D. when the Japanese learned the secret. Eventually, the wood-fiber paper was
brought to Spain in 711 A.D., but was not widely used in Europe, as most European societies did not use paper until
the 14th century. The quill pen is also a major invention in the history of writing tools.
The quill pen was introduced to the world in 700 A.D. The pen was made of bird feathers, and the strongest quills
were typically taken from live birds from the outer left wing feathers. After the development of the quill pen,
plant fiber paper became the popular medium for writing. Then another invention changed the history of writing
tools; Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press. This invention has led to various other developments in
printing and writing tools. Writing tools are essential to writing, and without the development we would not be
able to show others our ideas and thoughts.
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