soot ink (midad)

Ingredients

soot, burned paper, anemones, myrobalan, tannin, gum arabic

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

The text describes soot ink (midad) as the primary black writing fluid. Variants include Chinese, Iraqi, Persian, and India inks (p. 64). Preparation methods vary by intended user, with specific recipes listed for the 'common people' (p. 19) and 'monks' (p. 25). Ingredients involved in these soot formulations often include burned paper as a carbon source (p. 34), anemones for specific color properties (p. 23), and astringents like tannin (p. 7) and myrobalan (p. 19). Gum arabic is the standard binder mentioned to ensure proper viscosity and adherence (p. 75).

Evidence

"soot ink ... Chinese ink ... Iraqi ink ... Persian ink ... Kufic ink ... compound ink ... Nafuran ink ... India ink"

Remarks

The glossary provides a comprehensive taxonomy of soot-based inks in the medieval Arab world (p. 64). It details the functional differences between compound inks and simple soot inks. The index further notes that certain black inks were optimized for specific substrates, such as paper sheets or papyrus (p. 74). The mention of 'Kufic ink' suggests specific formulations were tied to calligraphic styles or early administrative periods.