Pen Lovers - for Lovers of Fine Writing

Kosher Ink

Kosher ink is used by Jewish scribes, or soferim to make the letters used in Torah (Books of the Bible) scrolls, Mezuzot (a passage from the Bible that is written on parchment and affixed to doorposts), Ketubot (marriage agreements), etc. To be kosher (fit for use), an ink ought to be coal black, without the slightest tint, and be durable and resilient in the face of centuries of use. Only kosher products may become a part of kosher ink.

In modern times, kosher ink is made of a combination of water, coal, oak gals (see the definitions below), wood rosin, and blue vitriol (whick makes the ink indelible).

Traditionally, feather quills (mostly turkey’s) called "kulmos" or bamboo pens are used to write.

Kosher Ink Recipe

Making kosher ink is a tremendously complex task, masked by a relatively simple recipe.
If you are not in the habit of making kosher ink, no doubt your first attempts will result in varying degrees of success (to put things gently). If you are in the habit of making kosher ink, then you're probably not reading this.

Different recipes for kosher ink exist, each consisting of some variation of tannic acid (derived from oak galls), iron sulfate or blue vitriol, gum arabic and lamp black. To further complicate things, there are great variations in the amount of tannin in the mixture. For example, Turkish oak galls often have a tannin content of 35%, while German galls have 10-15% tannin.

The following recipe assumes galls with a high tannin content. Good luck, and be sure to let us know how you made out.

Phil

Ingrediants

1 part gum arabic (see note below)
2 parts blue vitriol (a.k.a. copper or iron sulphate or copperas)
3 parts oak galls, grilled and powderized
30 parts water
some coal soot or lamp black for step 3 (see below)

Directions

preparation time: 4-5 hours

1. Grill and powderize the oak galls in a pan
2. Add half of the water and boil on a slow fire with constant stirring, to prevent the ink from burning, for two hours. You may add water from time to time to replace that lost by evaporation.
3. Allow to cool.
4. Filter, and while the filtration is proceeding, stir in the lampblack and gum arabic and the remaining water
5. Heat it for another hour.
6. Allow to cool
7. Filter and pour into bottles

The ink does not develop its full blackness until it sits for a while.

The ink is easily burned if water is not frequently replaced during the boiling process.
The solution tends to become very frothy as it boils, so be sure to use an extra large container, and use a spoon to push down any solids which collect on the interior walls.

If using dip pens or quills, the ink may be shaken to mix the precipitate into solution (the precipitate will clog fountain pens). If you wait a few days before using this ink, the color will become deeper and richer.

Definitions

Gum arabic	a natural gum also called gum acacia, is a substance that is taken from two sub-Saharan species of the acacia tree, Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal.
Kosher	Fit for use; prepared according to Jewish law
Kulmos	Feather quills used by Soferim, mostly from turkeys
Lampblack	Also referred to as the more common "Soot", or carbon black, is a dark powdery deposit of unburned fuel residues that accumulates in chimneys, automobile mufflers and other surfaces exposed to smoke, Lampblack has been used since prehistoric times as the source pigment in inks.
Oak Galls	(also galls, gall nuts, oak apples): A round growth found on a variety of trees, with those found on the oak being preferred for ink making. The growth is caused by the egg-laying activity of the gall wasp (from the Cynipidae family) or the gallfly (Cecidomyiidae). The gall contains a high percentage of tannin.
Sofer	A Jewish scribe. The plural form is Soferim.
Tannin	A substance found in a wide variety of plants. It can be extracted by boiling water from the bark of oaks, hemlock, chestnut, maple trees; some types of sumac leaves; coffee; tea; walnuts. The best sources for ink-making purposes is the oak gall. It is the tannin in combination with the iron of the copperas that causes the chemical reation creating the ink. However, tannin is also used as a dye mordant and as a wine-making ingrediant; if you can't locate oak galls in your area, try your local natural-dye shop or homebrewing store.
Vitriol	Blue Vitriol, or copper sulfate pentahydrate, CuSO4·5 H2O. The compound is called blue vitriol because because it can be prepared by oxidizing copper in hot concentrated sulfuric acid ("oil of vitriol"): Cu(s) + 2 H2SO4(l) + 3 H2O(l) rightarrow CuSO4·5 H2O(s) + SO2(g) It is also called "bluestone", "copper vitriol", and "flower of copper".