pencil talk | pencil reviews and discussion
exploring the art and science of pencils since 2005
Continuing from the previous post, we open up the tin. I would say there is a lot of evidence of pride in the product:
The paper flaps have all sorts of fascinating information about the MARS line. I like the list of the “most important” products:
The pencils, finished in black, perhaps have less show than we might expect, yet still look great:
Pencil packaging graphics were truly amazing some years ago. This post is more a look at some particular artwork rather an exploration of the pencils.
The seams of this box have largely disintegrated:
One side of the bottom has a label:
While the box itself has some nostalgic appeal, a gem is hidden on the inside lid:
Notice the “since 1662” phrase also. Staedtler now claims an 1835 origin.
The tins of pencils are themselves quite something:
I am glad to see the artist’s initials, “W.H.”
Due to the relatively large size of these images, I’ll wait until the next post to show the inside of the box.
The copying pencil was once a mainstream technology.
A precursor to carbon paper, the Gestetner machine, and the photo copier, the copying pencil allowed the duplication of hand created documents.
In today’s electronic era, the capture and duplication of most analogue input is a relative triviality. Hand copying a hand created document is done only in unusual circumstances. Ancient manuscripts in archives that might be damaged by a scanner’s lamp will be transcribed by scholars. Ceremonial invitations may be handwritten (sometimes in calligraphic script, equally removed from modern practice). But the norm is to digitize (scan, photograph, or photocopy, and possibly further electronically process) documents whose origins are analogue if a copy is required.
Of course, hand written original documents will be less common today, with document creation being partially or wholly electronic in modern offices and schools.
The copying pencil is a bridge between the modern era and the period when copying was not possible. It allows for a single, imperfect, fragile copy (typically on tissue paper) to be taken.
Though once manufactured in quantities of millions, there is relatively little information about how they were used, or how one would use those in current production.
There are four main sources I have been able to consult.
An often cited article, The Copying Pencil: Composition, History, and Conservation Implications by Liz Dube of the University of Notre Dame offers a great overview.
This article reveals that documents written in copying pencil once had presses with damp tissue paper applied, creating copies of correspondence that would placed in letter copying books. The copying pencil contains a dye that is released by moisture.
The article goes well back into the 19th century, and does provoke questions about what modern copying pencils are for. All but one of the pencils in Dube’s article appeared (even with magnification aids) to the author to be a regular graphite pencils.
The one that was not graphite-like was deemed to be a “hectographic” pencil. (And most of today’s copying pencils don’t appear to be graphite-like.)
This Wikipedia article mentions their use in tattoo layout. I have a couple of vintage hectographic pencils, and in searching online for modern ones, I’ve tended to come across websites that have confused the terms “hectographic” with “hexagonal”. They are not the same.
I did come across a tattoo supply company that offers their own brand of hectographic pencil.
The magic of purple pencil by Gajendra Rawat at the Australian War Memorial has further information, and a pretty good example of making a copy – the copy is easily readable.
Henry Petroski’s “The Pencil” only briefly mentions this pencil type.
Pencils mentions that in Italy, copying pencils are used for ballot marking during elections. I am not sure if this is still the case, but it is helpful as a modern usage description.
So I returned for another look at the Noblot, as well as some other modern copying pencils.
I had been trying to use the Noblot more like a watercolour pencil, laying down a line and then applying a brush. (Forgive me, it didn’t come with a manual!) but applying a damp piece of paper to the original produced much better results.
With tissue paper, I realized something else – the paper being see-through, you don’t have to be a mirror-reading expert – just read the copied document from the other side.
This won’t be perfect for copying detailed small writing, but it certainly is nonetheless amazing to find that these pencils have this embedded copying capability.
The official product page doesn’t mention their use, but art supply store Dick Blick says they can be used for assistance in sign restoration and painting.
Next, I tried Lyra’s offering, the Lyrato. Offered in red, green, and blue, I have only the latter two versions. They visually appear to be green and blue colour pencils. Attempting a copy reveals a small secret – the dye colour doesn’t necessarily correspond to the lead colour. Both green and blue pencils reveal the same blue dye! I am now very curious about their red pencil.
Lyra also has some intriguing offerings in their catalogue, such a copying carpenter’s pencil.
Next, Veritas. Veritas is a brand of Lee Valley Tools, and I am curious about who manufactures these pencils. Lee Valley also sell branded graphite pencils, made in England, while these pencils are marked “Made in USA”.
The Veritas Indelible, like the Noblot, appears to be a regular graphite pencil, so it is the second such modern pencil that I am aware of. It leaves a much richer, darker mark than the Noblot, and has a puple dye. The Veritas Indelible Red is, you guessed it, red with red dye.
Lee Valley is very clear about what these pencils are for – marking wood with a scriber.
The deluxe copying pencil is the Castell Document from Faber-Castell. It comes in four colours – black, green, red, and blue. The black is like a black pencil crayon, not a graphite pencil.
The black pencil has a most interesting model number, 9100 1/2. I love that “1/2” ! It evokes some of the tradition behind these pencils.
These pencils have the richest colours of this set, both as pencils and dyes.
Like the Lyra, what you see is not what you get. The blue pencil has a blue dye, and the red pencil has a red dye. But the black pencil has a purple dye, and the green pencil has the same blue dye as the blue pencil.
Faber-Castell says they are “for cheques, deeds, contracts etc.” Basically, use as an indelible pencil. Hmm, I am skeptical. Why four colours? I don’t think I can even imagine what would ensue if I brought one of these pencils to a bank or lawyer’s office to sign an official document, and I doubt deed signing is the current market.
Finally, Portuguese manufacturer Viarco offers the 272D Copia Violeta. It distinguishes itself with a purple lead. While purple dye may be a standard, the matching lead, dye and rich purple pencil finish create a great thematic unity. Viarco manufactures a full line of pencils, including this gem, with a staff of just over two dozen! That said, it makes a fairly faint line to my eye.
Let’s summarize these modern copying pencils:
| Manufacturer | Model | Lead Colour | Dye Colour |
| Faber Castell | Castell Document 9100 1/2 | Black | Purple |
| Faber Castell | Castell Document 9609 | Red | Red |
| Faber Castell | Castell Document 9610 | Blue | Blue |
| Faber Castell | Castell Document 9611 | Green | Blue |
| Lyra | Lyrato 778B | Blue | Blue |
| Lyra | Lyrato 778G | Green | Blue |
| Lyra | Lyrato 778R | Red | Red? |
| Sanford | Noblot Ink Pencil 705 | Graphite | Purple |
| Veritas | Indelible | Graphite | Purple |
| Veritas | Indelible Red | Red | Red |
| Viarco | Copia Violeta 272D | Purple | Purple |
We’ve seen these modern uses proposed:
I accept “sign painting aid” and “scribing tool” as legitimate uses, though the markets for these purposes must be quite limited. I can’t confirm the election ballot situation, though it would represent a solid but irregular business. And wouldn’t Italy source these pencils from Fila rather than buy any of the pencils named here? Perhaps other countries use the same method.
Regarding the traditional uses as suggested by Faber-Castell – I already mentioned my skepticism here. Ink is not exactly unestablished as a legal marking medium. Or is there some official use I’m not contemplating? Don’t forget the Dube article, which shows this medium does not do well at surviving humidity or moisture. It would seem to be a very unusual choice for official documents.
Tattooing I also accept as a modern use, and wonder if some of the multiple colour pencils might be useful for that task.
Since it isn’t known what sort of market share these pencils have, it may be that the cited uses are in fact correct.
Are there any other uses for these pencils that you are aware of? Or any other manufacturers still making them?
It has been over two years since we last looked at a copying pencil.
The Sanford Noblot, like the Koh-I-Noor Kopierstifte 1561, appears to be a regular graphite pencil, writing with a traditional “black lead” core.
There are still several copying pencils on the market with coloured leads, but the Noblot is the last one I’m aware of in the graphite style.
It is a handsome pencil, with silver lettering on a luminous grey barrel, and a metal cap.
It also has a slogan on the reverse side : “A Bottle of Ink in a Pencil”.
The obverse reads “Sanford Noblot Ink Pencil 705”.
If you look carefully, you can see an impressed remnant of the Eberhard Faber heritage: “Woodclinched U.S.A.”.
As a pencil, it seems a bit cheap and scratchy. It is definitely an indelible pencil, trouncing the erasure attempts of even the Staedtler Mars plastic.
To test the copying quality, I drew (imperfectly) a circle on a sheet of Bloc Faf paper.
I then wet the paper revealing a rich cobalt blue:
With tissue and other paper types, I’m afraid that I couldn’t pick up much more than a smudge of blue. I’m curious about the exact paper choices and water application techniques that would be required to use the pencil as a working copying pencil.
Do you use this pencil? What do you use it for, and how do you use it?
A recent (excellent) post at Timberlines made me think of these pencils. I had bought a box of “vintage” pencils via an online auction site whose name begins with “E”. The slightly padded envelope in which they arrived hadn’t stopped the cardboard pencil box from arriving with all corners broken. Also, the box was precisely seven twelfths full. Anyhow, sometimes you have to look on the bright side – they are still interesting (and historic) pencils, and less expensive than seven new pencils from any quality manufacturer. In fact they were less than seven new Koh-I-Noor pencils would cost me.
The box is cardboard, with the Koh-I-Noor emblem on the cover, and marked “1561 mittel” and “L & C. Hardmuth” on the sides. The pencils are yellow, with gold stamping:
L. & C. HARDMUTH "KOH-I-NOOR" KOPIERSTIFT * 1561 * MITTEL
Unlike the text on the box, there is a period after the “L”. The box is additionally marked inside “Koh-I-Noor Bleistiftfabrik”. I believe that “Kopierstift” roughly translates to what would be known as a copying or indelible pencil, and “mittel” to middle. “Bleistiftfabrik” is pencil factory. Cool!
Picking one up, the first thing I noticed was that these pencils are larger than modern round pencils, such as the Faber-Castell 9008. The core also seems much wider.
The next step required some debate. Although I could see arguments for preserving them, there was also another side. These pencils were made by craftsmen across an ocean and across a generation. I would assume they wanted their product used. So – I got out the sharpener.
My first thought was – “wow, I just sharpened a really old pencil.” The larger pencil width seemed to produce a longer point than other pencils in my sharpener (a Faber-Castell UFO). The two halves of the casing also seemed quite visible.
Writing on a Rhodia pad, I wrote a few lines. I also tried a modern Koh-I-Noor for comparison. The pencil writes smoothly and reliably, similar to many other quality pencils. The lead seems quite strong. I also tried erasing my writing. It is definitely a copying pencil, and resists vinyl erasers! Only my black Factis (meant for charcoal) erased the lines of the 1561.
I thought I was done, and was going to post what I had written – but I hadn’t yet discovered the most interesting part of this pencil. After sharpening the pencil, trying it out, and writing the above notes (with the pencil), I noticed some graphite dust on my hands. When I went to wash up, the dust turned a brilliant purple. I had never seen this before from a pencil. A little searching on the web turned up this excellent article on copying pencils from an American Institute for Conservation publication. The purple had come from a dye – an “aniline dye” that was created from coal tar by-products.
An original use of these pencils was placing a damp tissue above the pencil writing to take a copy. For anyone old enough to remember a ditto machine from high school (remember the smell of a fresh ditto?), these pencils seem like a manual predecessor. They’re also associated with copy presses and were used with carbon paper. The “indelible” function took over at some point as the main use and selling point.
I tried to moisten some paper and press it against my notes to take a copy. It transferred very roughly, and I can see that with some practice and a careful choice of paper and moistenening methods, it would be a useable method.
It struck me as quite amazing that this ordinary looking yellow pencil was capable of so much.