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The evolution of the writing utensil
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Transcript of The evolution of the writing utensil
The Evolution of the Writing
UtensilBy: Sneha Ramprasad and Morgan
Brauer
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 b/c 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 (b/c 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
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
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