Historical Note
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Up to the Pencil
The pencil—a graphite-filled wooden rod—was introduced as a writing instrument more than four centuries ago. Unlike implements that use ink or other liquid writing media, the pencil employs a solid marking substance. And its very simplicity, efficiency, and low cost have allowed it to remain one of the most commonly used writing instruments despite such technologically advanced alternatives such as the ball-point pen, the typewriter, and the computer. In 1564 a large deposit of a new mineral was discovered in a mine at Borrowdale, Cumberland, in England's Lake District. The discovery was supposedly made when a storm uprooted a large oak tree. This new mineral was found in soft, lustrous veins. Thought to be a form of lead, it was called "black lead" or "plumbago." Black lead made a dark but removable mark, blacker than metallic lead. Metallic lead had been used since Roman times and had remained one of the most common alternatives to marking on paper because the quill and ink method was so bothersome. Black lead was first used in chunks, called marking stones. Later, the material was cut into small rods or strips and wrapped in twine to provide a comfortable grip and additional strength. Users unwound the twine from the point, as necessary. These instruments made a fine black line, reminiscent of the writing from the fine Roman brush called a pencilium; thus the instrument became known as a lead pencil. The German word for pencil, Bleistift, literally means "lead pin." Since black lead was also found to have many important military applications-it was, for instance, added to iron in the casting of cannon balls-output from the Borrowdale mine was closely guarded and regulated, which meant that even small amounts of black lead were very difficult to come by. In 1565 the German-Swiss naturalist Konrad von Gesner first wrote about a new writing instrument composed of a chip of black lead inserted into a wooden holder. This method not only kept a writer's fingers from getting smeared, but also prevented the expensive black lead from breaking. Von Gesner described black lead as a new and separate mineral, which he called stimmi anglicanum or English anti-
MRS BULLETIN/JUNE 1994
mony. Not until 1779 did Carl Wilhelm larly those from the firm of A.W. Faber, Scheele, a chemist in Sweden, recognize flooded the market. black lead to be a form of microcrysMost wooden pencil casings were talline carbon. In 1789 Abraham G. made of cedar, though some later casings Werner named the substance "graphite" were made of plastic, metal, or resin/ after the Greek word qraphien, meaning sawdust composites. "to write." Sharpening pencils became a noticeThough the English supply of graphite able nuisance to the many users as early was pure enough to be used in its natural as 1822. This led to numerous inventions state, other countries sought viable alterand variations on the "mechanical pennatives, binding graphite dust (waste cil," a contrivance that mechanically and residue from the mines) into usable feeds an un
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