carbon ink

Ingredients

carbon

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

The manuscript was written using carbon-based ink (p. 10). While the specific manufacture recipe for this ink is not analyzed in this biodegradation-focused study, carbon ink typically involves the suspension of soot or lampblack in a binder such as gum arabic or honey (Section 2).

Evidence

"This historical manuscript was written in Arabic language using carbon ink, containing two volumes, each one has a size (cm3) of 32 × 20 x 8 (length x width x height) and is composed of 570 paper sheets..."

Remarks

The manuscript 'Kashf al-Ramz ‘an Khabaya al-Kanz', dated 1663 AD, contains 570 paper sheets with text written in Arabic script using carbon ink (p. 10). The study notes the ink is applied to a cotton-based paper substrate that has undergone significant biological and chemical degradation, which can compromise the stability of the ink layers. The manuscript was stored in poor conditions at the Al-Azhar Library, characterized by poor ventilation and high groundwater levels (p. 10).