Dictionarium polygraphicum. Ink.

Dictionarium Polygraphicum:
Or, The Whole Body of Arts Regularly Digested.
Vol II.
London: Printed for C. Hitch and C. Davis in Pater-noster Row, and S. Austen in St. Paul's Church Yard. MDCCXXXV.
1735
INK, a very good Black for Writing. Take rain water two quarts, nut galls only broken into bits half a pound, copperas 4 ounces, alum 4 ounces; infuse all in a gentle heat for a month, add gum Arabick 4 ounces, which dissolve in it, and keep the mixture for use.


Another black writing INK.
Take rain-water 2 quarts, nut galls broken into little bits 4 ounces; digest them in a sand-heat for a week: then dissolve 2 ounces and a half of vitriol or copperas in a pint of rain water by boiling it gently; adding in the dissolution a little gum Arabick: being dissolved, mix it with the water and galls; digest in a sand-heat for a week; and keep the clear for use.


Another very good INK for writing.
Take ponderous galls, 3 ounces, reduce them to powder, infuse them in 3 pinrs of rain-water, setting it in the sun or a gentle heat for 2 days; then take common or Roman vitriol 3 ounces, powder it, put it in, and set it in the fun for 2 days more, shake it well, and add an ounce of good gum Arabick.


Another good black INK.
Take 3 pints of rain-water, 3 ounces of nut-galls broken into little bits, digest them in a sandheat for a week, then add 2 ounces ot copperas or vitriol to a pint of rain-water, boil it gently till it is dissolved, adding to the dissolution a little gum Arabick, which, when it is dissolved, mix it with the water and galls; digest it for a week in a sand-heat, and keep the clear for use.


Another black writing INK.
Take white wine 2 quarts, log-wood ground, or shavings of it, one pound: boil them till a quart is consumed; then strain the liquor from the wood, and put into it 8 ounces of nut-galls bruised, pomegranate peels 4 ounces; mix and digest in a sand-heat for a week, shaking it 4 or 5 times a day: then add to it 4 ounces, of roman vitriol or green copperas, and digest it 2 days more; after which, add gum Arabick 4 ounces; digest 24 Hours, and strain all out into another vessel, and keep the Ink for use.
Note, 1. That the fæces will serve again for the same quantity of liquor or logwood Infusion.
2. That rain-water seems to be better for this purpose than white wine.
3. That probably the quantity of gum Arabick is too much.


Another very good black writing INK.
Take strong stale beer half a gallon (or white or red wine the same quantity) old nails 3 or 4 pounds; digest in a cold place for 8, 10, or 12 months; then decant off the clear liquor or tincture. Take Catechu in fine powder 3 ounces, common brandy half a pint, mix, and in a sand-heat make a strong tincture, which decant: mix this with the former tincture, and it becomes a black Ink.


Another very excellent black writing INK.
Take water in which a large quantity of old nails has lain for a year or two, a gallon, nut-galls broken into little bits a pound; common vitriol or copperas 4 ounces; infuse all together for a month, stirring or shaking the vessel very well 5 or 6 times every day. Then add gum Arabick cut into bits 2 ounces; dissolve and keep it continually stirring once or twice every day.
Note, When you use it, you may put in a little white sugarcandy, and dissolve it, so will your writing shine; but it ought not to be put in, but as you have occasion for it; for after 3 or 4 days it spoils the Ink.


Another very good black INK.
Take Thames or rain-water 2 quarts, nut-galls only broken into small bits half a pound; copperas 2 ounces; infuse all in a gentle sand-heat for 6 weeks shaking the bottle 4 or 5 times every day; then dissolve in it
4 ounces of gum arabick, (or less may be better) and let it stand upon the fæces for use.


To make the London Powder INK.
Take 10 ounces of the clearest nut-galls, bruise them and sift the powder very fine; then add 2 ounces of white copperas, 4 ounces of Roman vitriol, gum Arabick or sandarach an ounce; pound and sift them very fine, so that though they appear white, a little of it being put into water, it will in a little time turn black; and an ounce of powder will make a pint of very black Ink.


To make Japan, or shining INK.
Take gum Arabick and Roman vitriol of each an ounce, galls well bruised a pound, put them into rape vinegar, or vinegar made of clear small beer; set them in a warm place; stir them often till the liquor be comes black; then add to a gallon an ounce of ivory black, and a quarter of a pint of seed-lac varnish, and it will be a curious black shining Ink.


To make a POWDER INK, to rub on Paper.
Take about 20 nut-galls, reduce them to a very fine powder; take half an ounce of Roman vitriol, and as much gum Arabick and gum sandarach, powder and lift them very fine, then mingle them together, and rub the paper hard with a piece of cotton, and polish it with a piece of ivory; write with water, and in a little time the letters you write will appear a fine black, as if written with the best Ink.


To make China INK.
Take lamp-black purified 8 ounces, indigo 2 ounces, ivory black one ounce, peach-stone black half an ounce: beat all together, and make a mass; make it into a paste with water in which a very little gum Arabick has been dissolved; and so form them into long square tablets.


A shining Japan or China INK.
Take an ounce of lamp black, and clarify it in an earthen pipkin to take out the dross, 2 drams of indigo, half a dram of peach black, one dram of black endive burnt; reduce them to a very fine powder, and then with a moiery of fig-leaf water, and another part of milk, and a very little gum Arabick, when they are well mixed, make them up for use.


To make Indian INK.
Take horse-beans, burn them till they are perfectly black, grind them to a fine powder, and with a weak gum arabick water snake it into a paste, which form into long square cakes.


A black INK which vanishes in 24 hours.
Boil or digest nut-galls 24 hours, in gross powder, in aquafortis, add to them vitriol or copperas and a little sal armoniack, and it is done: what is written with this will vanish in 24 hours.


To make Red writing INK.
Take raspings of Brazil one ounce, white lead and alum of each 2 drams; grind and mingle them, infuse them in urine one pound, with 2 scruples of gum Arabick, or a dram at most.


Another Red INK.
Take wine vinegar a pint, raspings of Brazil 1 ounce, alum half an ounce, infuse all for 10 days; then boil it gently, and add to it 5 drams of gum arabick; dissolve the gum, strain and keep it for use.
Note, that 2 drams of gum in some cases may be enough.


To make Red writing INK with Vermilion.
Grind vermilion well upon a porphyry stone with common water; dry it and put it into a glass vessel, to which put urine; shake it, let it settle, then pour off the urine, and put on more urine: repeat this changing the urine 8 or 10 times; so will the vermilion be well cleansed; to which put glair of eggs to swim on it above a finger's breadth; stir them together, and when well settled, abstract the glair: then put on more glair of eggs, repeating the same operation 8 or 10 times also, to takeaway the scent of the urine; lastly, mix it with fresh glair, and keep it in a glass vessel close stopped for use; and when you use it, mix it with water or vinegar.


To make Red Printing INK.
Grind vermilion very well with liquid varnish or linseed oil.


To make a Blue INK.
Grind Indigo with honey mixed with glair of eggs, or glue- water made of ismg-glass, dissolved in water and strained.


To make Green INK to write withal.
Make fine Verdigrease into paste with strong vinegar, and infusion of green galls, in which a little gum arabick has been dissolved; let it dry, and when you would write with it, temper it with infusion of green galls, &c.


Another Green INK.
Dissolve verdigrease in vinegar, then strain it, and grind it with a little honey and mucilage of gum tragacanth upon a porphyry stone.


Another Green INK.
Boil verdigrease with argol in fair water, and then dissolve in it a little gum Arabick, and it will be good.


A Green Printing INK.
Grind Spanish green with liquid varnish, or linseed oil; and after the same manner you may make a Printer's Blue, by grinding azure with linseed oil.


An INK to write upon black paper.
Dissolve Tin-glass, or spelter, in aqua fortis made of nitre and alum; precipitate with oil of tartar; edulcorate perfectly with fair water, and dry it in a glass Bason; mix this powder with gum water, and it will be white, with which you may write on black paper: and with pure white flowers of antimony you may do the same.

To take INK out of printed books or pictures.
Wet a little aquafortis upon it, and it will be speedily out; then wash it over with a little alum water or vinegar, and it will kill the aqua fortis, which otherwise will either eat the paper, or make it yellow. Spirt of vitriol will do the same.