Who Invented the Quill Pen?
Quill pens were the dominant writing instrument until around mid-19th century, constructed from stiff-spined flight feathers on the leading edge of bird wings – usually goose or swan; turkey feathers may also have been used.
These nibs feature a natural slit which can be expanded with a knife to form a nib. Ink was stored through capillary action, providing efficient inking for parchment surfaces.
The Egyptians
From antiquity through the 19th century, two primary writing instruments existed: the reed pen and quill. Of these two writing tools, only the latter achieved widespread use due to its excellent performance on parchment (animal skin) which was prevalent at that time – where literature was being written at that point in history.
Quill pens were an ideal solution for fine and detailed work compared to clay tablets which were difficult to use, wax tablets which were delicate and vulnerable to heat exposure, and reed pens which could produce blots and splatters; quill pens allowed finer lines than any of its alternatives allowing scribes to create beautiful illustrations on old manuscripts using quill pens in combination with fine brushes.
A quill is a feather, typically from goose or swan (though turkey feathers were sometimes also used). Its shaft contains an ink-filled hollow section and narrow slit to allow capillary action of ink flow towards its tip through capillary action. Once hardened and shaped into a nib, which can then be sharpened using a pen knife knife, its tip becomes hard and sharpened using this process.
The Copp family
Prior to the creation of steel pen nibs, quill pens were the preferred writing instrument. Their best quills came from goose and swan feathers; other sources, such as turkeys, crows, owls and hawks have also been employed as quill sources.
Feathers were collected from living birds during their spring new-growth period and generally the outer five feathers from each wing were selected; after which their ends were cut into traditional nib shapes using a pen knife before creating a slit to secure it all together.
This quilt was likely constructed by one of Samuel and Dolley Copp’s children living in Stonington, CT during the 18th and 19th century. It depicts their family tree with names, birthdates, marriage dates of Sarah, Jonathan, Betsey Esther and John Brown displayed along two intertwining branches sprouting from two hearts on a blue hill base. Furthermore, this quilt contains various printed, woven-patterned, plain fabrics used at that time in addition to printed, woven patterned and plain fabrics used at that time in addition to such fabric used at that time.
The Middle Ages
Feather quill pens were popular from the 6th to 19th centuries until metal pens became widely available; feather quills were made using stiff-spined flight feathers from birds’ wings (typically goose or swan, though turkey feathers have also been utilized), typically goose or swan (though turkey feathers were sometimes employed). Feather quill pens became especially prominent during medieval times, and until relatively recently such important documents as Magna Carta and Declaration of Independence were written using these quill pens.
Today, the Middle Ages have shed the historical stigma associated with it as “The Dark Ages”. Instead, this period is now widely recognized for its troubadours, Gothic cathedrals and university development; not to mention St Thomas Aquinas’ prodigious intellect and remarkable intellect among others.
But it was also a time of economic and territorial expansion, the rise of monarchy and Holy Roman Empire, restructuring secular and ecclesiastical institutions and conflict – such as Crusades or Islamic caliphate expansion or Crusader states’ establishment in Holy Land.
The 19th Century
Quill pens were once the go-to writing instrument until the 19th Century. Crafted from goose, turkey, swan and crow feathers with hollow barrels used to hold ink reservoirs and sturdy points which could be cut to fine writing points, these quill pens were popular among Western master draftsmen to create fine delineations in manuscripts; Thomas Jefferson even raised geese specifically so he had enough quill pens available for himself. Quill pens also served as essential signature tools when signing documents such as Magna Carta and Declaration of Independence documents.
However, with the invention of steel nib pens in 1820 and their introduction into everyday writing instruments (wooden or metal handles with steel nibs), quill pens became less prevalent as more practical writing instruments like self-filling pens were created which eliminated repeated dipping for ink refill. Writers saw this tedious task as an opportunity to develop self-filling pens which enabled writers to avoid this repeated chore of replenishing ink reserves with frequent dips into inkwells requiring replenishing each time their ink ran dry – leading many writers to develop self-filling self-filling pens without needing frequent dips into inkwells!
