carbonic ink
Egypt
2th Century
Source: Nodar, A., Pereira, F. J., Ferrer, N., & López, R. (2022). Ink and support characterization of typologically established papyrus groups from the Palau-Ribes collection. Heritage Science, 10(1), 107.
Recipe Details
Ingredients
carbon, gum Arabic
Preparation Steps
Carbon inks were typically manufactured by mixing a carbon source (like soot or charcoal) with a binder such as gum Arabic (p. 5). In many cases, especially in documentary papyri from Bawit, the mixture of ink with papyrus fibres is so strong that it is difficult to isolate the ink from the support (p. 4, p. 10).
Original Recipe Text
Carbon inks were typically manufactured by mixing a carbon source (like soot or charcoal) with a binder such as gum Arabic (p. 5). In many cases, especially in documentary papyri from Bawit, the mixture of ink with papyrus fibres is so strong that it is difficult to isolate the ink from the support (p. 4, p. 10).
Evidence
"The absence of iron and the background absorption of the infrared spectrum is normally due to carbon content. ... These results make us conclude that it is carbon ink."
Remarks
Carbon inks are the dominant type for documentary texts across both the Roman and Byzantine periods (p. 10). Unlike iron-gall inks, carbon inks are often deeply inter-mixed with the papyrus fibres, which may be a result of the manufacturing process or the application style for documentary scripts (p. 4).
Scientific Analysis
Chemical CompositionC
Analytical Techniques
SEM/EDX
infrared microspectrometer
Certainty Level
Confirmed
Instrumentally Verified
Verified
Metadata
Material Type
ink
BinderAcacia gum
Paper TypePapyrus
ColorBlack
RegionEgypt
Approx. Year150
Source Information
AuthorNodar, A., Pereira, F. J., Ferrer, N., & López, R.
CollectionOxyrhynchus and Bawit
Language
N/A
AI Suggestions
Find similar recipes based on ingredients and preparation methods.