Wax Tablets And Stylus: Reflection

[raging.dragon]

Messers Silone, dragon, 9990,

 

Please: not SO enthusiastic about wax tablets. (Or to make a pun parallel to Mr. 9990's: Please don't wax so enthusiastic about tablets. Ouch.) They're a neat technical problem, and Mr. 9990's version is convincing and provocative of further thought, as are the corrections and enhancements all three of you have been advancing. There's further work to be done, and resolving some of the issues you've generated will provide useful knowledge regarding the practices of artisans first of all and then of teachers too.

 

But do remember: wax tablets were a sideshow to the ancient world. Students wrote on them because they make mistakes and need to erase them. They need an ephemeral medium in which to practice their writing. But neither authors nor publishers of the Hellenic and Roman past used them. Plato did not keep notes for his classes or his dialogues on wax tablets, nor did Demosthenes his speeches [and so on and so on]. Like we do, they used paper and pen. And so did Plato's publisher when the time would come to offer the public a new expanded, edition of the dialogues.

 

Production of papyri in sufficient quantity and with the right qualities for ancient writing has problems of its own--likewise the manufacture of ink for the papyri--and it's these issues I'd be very curious to see you address to see the results you produce. So, a little longer on tablets by all means. But not too much longer. There's work to be done regarding the writing of the professionals, not just the students.

 

Good luck.

 

Marc

 

I know something of wood working; however, I'm afraid I can't provide much help on making papyrus or ink, as I have no particular expertise in those fields. Which is kind of ironic considering my education.

[marcomillions]

I know something of wood working; however, I'm afraid I can't provide much help on making papyrus or ink, as I have no particular expertise in those fields. Which is kind of ironic considering my education.

 

"Considering my education." OK, I'll bite. Which was . . .?

[Titanic9990]

I know something of wood working; however, I'm afraid I can't provide much help on making papyrus or ink, as I have no particular expertise in those fields. Which is kind of ironic considering my education.

 

"Considering my education." OK, I'll bite. Which was . . .?

This inquiry led me to find this website...

My link

...and my family thinks classics is an obscure major... I should switch to sports ministry

anywho I found this describing the papyrus making process:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9el1VJqIgw

 

and I also found that ancient inks were made from lampblack(soot), saps/gums, small amounts of beeswax, gelatins, and water or a combination of some of those.

[raging.dragon]

I know something of wood working; however, I'm afraid I can't provide much help on making papyrus or ink, as I have no particular expertise in those fields. Which is kind of ironic considering my education.

 

"Considering my education." OK, I'll bite. Which was . . .?

 

Chemical engineering and computer programming. The former is obviously rather relevant to ink making, yet I haven't researched ink making or tried making my own ink.

[Marveen1]

Thanks

 

Now I have to make a more permanent stylus, any ideas -I still can't decide on metal or wood or how to make it in general. It needs a flat end for erasing and a pointed for writing -Sorry no vacumatic, aeromatic, lever, cartridge fillers here

 

I love the wax-tablet project, and I would suggest for a beginning stylus perhaps a bone hairpin. I looked for a pic but can't find one--I buy mine from a local bead store. They're tapered, four and a half to five inches long, pointy ends with various degrees of pointy (from needlelike to rounded and blunt) and the opposite end is a tab end either rounded or squared off. Sounds perfect for a stylus to me, especially since they also come in a variety of diameters.

 

For a wooden stylus, there are wooden hairpins with the same qualities, they're just usually longer--say six inches, and instead of a flat tab on the end just have a hole drilled into the blunt end lengthwise. Some creative whittling or sanding would give you a flattened "eraser" opposite the pointy end.

 

I'll also note that in high school we had wax-lined dissecting trays much like these tablets, and the teacher would "erase" our pinholes and scratchings by using a blowtorch. Perhaps one could erase by holding a hot iron above the text, like the old "salamander" kitchen broiler.