non-vitriolic iron-gall ink

Ingredients

iron filings, nails, solid pieces of iron

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

This secondary ink is a variant of iron-gall ink prepared with no significant metallic impurities, likely using iron filings, nails, or solid pieces of iron rather than vitriol (p. 4). XRF results show strong iron (Fe) signals but an absence of copper (Cu) (p. 5). This composition is consistent with non-vitriolic iron-gall ink recipes recorded in Arabic literature from at least the 13th century, though used earlier in Egypt (p. 4).

Evidence

"A second ink was observed, likely corresponding to a later scribal intervention. It was identified as a variant of iron-gall ink, with no significant impurities present. This variant of iron-gall ink is not uncommon in the Arabic world... In the Münster fragment, the secondary ink was likely used for a specific purpose: to reink sections of faded text (on Hs. 15a and perhaps on localised spots on Hs. 15c) and to insert a correction (on Hs. 15b)."

Remarks

The secondary ink was used for later scribal interventions, specifically for re-inking faded text (jandara) and inserting corrections (p. 1, 9, 10). This intervention likely took place after the manuscript was donated to the mosque of ʿAmr b. al-ʿĀṣ in the late 9th century (p. 10). On fragment Hs. 15a, the re-inking ink proved corrosive, leading to the loss of parchment material through piercing (p. 3, 4).