soot ink

Ingredients

cedar, dried fruit of the pine, water, cooked myrtle, vitriol, water of gum

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

Take two parts of cedar or dried fruit of the pine or of them together. Put it into a clay vessel and put it into an oven until it becomes charcoal. It is taken out the next morning and pulverized a day on a stone. It is soaked with water or cooked myrtle and a little of vitriol made according to the mentioned description. It is completely pulverized with water myrtle, and pulverized with water of gum in such quantity that there is for every ratl of pulverized charcoal ink two ounces of water of gum. (p. 25)

Evidence

"A distinction was made, however, between soot ink and gall-nut ink. Soot usually gave black ink."

Remarks

The recipe highlights the specific ratio of binder (gum) to charcoal (2 ounces per ratl). If the ink is too hard, additional gum is removed and it is kneaded before being left in the shade to dry in layers. (p. 25)