The evolution of the writing utensil

The Evolution of the Writing

UtensilBy: Sneha Ramprasad and Morgan

Brauer Period: 3

Sharpened Tool Stone Cavemen first discovered this sharpened

tool stone Etched drawings onto the cave (their home)

walls Represented events that happened in their

daily life-Ex.: planting of crops and hunting

victories

Writing Stylus Greek invented Made of metal,

bone, or ivory Used to make marks on wax coated

tablets (made of clay) Fun Fact: in 400 B.C. the Greeks

developed the first alphabet They were also the first to write left to right

Indian Ink

Chinese invented Invented by

Tien-Lcheu in 2697 B.C. Originally designed for blacking the

surfaces of raised stone-carved hieroglyphics

Mixture of soot from pine smoke and lamp oil with gelatin of donkey skin and musk

The Reed Pen

Created by the Romans Made by the hollow

tubular-stems of marsh grasses(ex. Bamboo plant)

Cut one end into the form of a pen nib/ point

Ink filled the stem to squeeze the reed forced fluid to the nib

Ink- Revised

400 A.D Iron-salts, nutgalls and gum Color: Bluish-Black Dark Black

Dull Brown

Quill Pen

700 A.D. Lasted for more than 1 thousand years Made from a bird feather Strongest Quills from…

› Living Birds in the Spring› From 5 outer left wing feathers› Goose: most common› Swan: premium

Lasts for 1 week To sharpen the quill, you need

a special tool

Fountain Tip Pen

Louis Waterman patented the first practical one 1884 Use: carry their own supply of ink Early models were plagued by ink spills

and other failures His was different because he added

An air hole Grooves inside the feed mechanism

Parts of the Fountain Tip Pen

Nib: Has contact with the paper

Feed: Black partunder the nib that controls the ink flow from the reservoir to the nib

Barrel: the part you grip while writing

Ballpoint Pen

Laszlo Biro- Hungarian journalist 1938 Used newspaper ink (because it dried

quicker) Created a new tip

› Had to add a rotating ball to make the thicker ink go through As the pen wrote, the ball rotated picking up

ink from the ink cartridge

Mate

rials

Pen

Pencil

Made out of metals, plastics, and other chemicals

Most are made out of brass because of strength and appealing appearance

Ink is made by the pen manufacturer › Pigments and dyes are used to produce the

color

Lead: Graphite and Clay Outer Layer:

› Original Pencil: Wood painted yellow because the graphite is too fragile and needs something surrounding it

› Mechanical Pencil: Plastic outer Eraser: Synthetic rubber

Recycling (Pencils) Pencils are biodegradable Pencil made out of 20-33% recycled

blue denim jeans that have been ground up

Rest is recycled post-consumer paper In addition, a blue eraser is added You can also make a pencil from

recycled dollar bills

Reynolds Takes Idea

Reynolds copies the product and sells it in America

Reynolds is sued by Eversharp (who bought the rights of Biro’s product)

Reynolds’ and Eversharp’s pen leaked and sometimes failed to write

They both received many returns

The Jotter

Company: Parker Pens Qualities

Variety of point sizes Rotating cartridge Large capacity ink refills IT WORKED Wrote 5 times longer than previous ball-point

pens Sold 3.5 million @ $2.95 to $8.75 in

1954

BIC Ballpoint pens

1950: Bich (drops the “h”) starts selling pens

Late 1950s: BIC holds 70% of European market

1958: BIC buys 60% of Waterman Pens (New York based)

1960: BIC buys out Waterman Pens › Sell ballpoint pens in U.S. for 29-69 cents

Today Writing has become more convenient

and easier with the improvements of the writing utensil

BIC dominates the market Parker, Sheaffer, and Waterman

› Small market of… Fountain tip pens Expensive Ballpoints

The Pencil The pencil first originated from

the ancient Roman writing instrument, the stylus.

Early styluses were made out of lead, but nowadays, pencils are made of non-toxic graphite.

Graphite was widely used when it was discovered in Borrowdale, England in 1564.

It left darker marks than lead, and since the mineral is very soft and brittle, it required a holder. That is why it is wrapped around hollowed-out wooden sticks.

The Mechanical Pencil Also known as click pencils, automatic

pencils, propelling pencils, and technical pencils.

They were invented in 1822 by Sampson Mordan and Gabriel Riddle who were both from England.

They thought of it as a “refillable leadholder” rather than a mechanical pencil.

Graphite is used as lead to make these mechanical pencils.

The Evolution of Writing Utensils

Sharpened Tool Stone

Writing Stylus

Mechanical Pencils

Pencils

Ballpoint Pen

Reed Pen

Quill Pen

Fountain Tip Pen

Both Roman created at the

same time period

Works Cited:A Brief history of writing instruments. (2010).

Retrieved from http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa100197.htm

Pencil history. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.pencils.com/pencil-history

Recycled Denim Pencils. (2010). Retrieved fromhttp://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/08/earthmate_penci.php

Binder, Laura. (Ed.). (2010). The History of the mechanical pencil.

http://www.ehow.com/about_5035439_history-mechanical-pencil.html