Technology is prevalent in every aspect of our day, and increasingly so. That is perhaps why it is almost comforting to pick up a traditional pen or pencil.
However, is there such a thing as a traditional pen? When you look back at how the humble pen has developed over time, you might begin to consider it less as a simplistic writing tool and more as a masterful piece of technology.
The First Pens
The earliest known pens hail from Ancient Egypt, where hollow reeds were filled with a writing liquid and squeezed to control the flow. This technique was gradually replaced with quill pens around the Middle Ages, which was then the most common writing implement used all the way until the 19th Century.
Quill pens needed to be dipped in ink more frequently than a spring roll needs dipping in sauce, but that didn’t stop Shakespeare from using it to write his famous prose. Dip pens were still popular through the 1800s, and many a story has been told of school children dealing with ink stained fingers and plaited hair falling into the ink pot!
The fountain pen was introduced in 1884, followed by the ballpoint pen in the 1940s, where writing became less blotchy and a whole lot more convenient.
1940s – The Ballpoint
Replacing an open nib with a rotating steel ball seems such common sense, but in 1944 it was nothing short of a miracle. With quick-drying, smooth-flowing ink that didn’t need refilling, these long-lasting pens were such a gamechanger that the British Government even bought the rights to the first Biro for their own Air Force.
1960s – The Fineliner (Felt-Tip)
First known as a “Magic Marker”, the felt-tip pen steadily gained popularity ’60s. The ‘magic’ of the fineliner is its versatility; depending on the ink, it can be produced as a permanent marker, highlighter, or one of the vivid and colourful markers we know as “textas“.
1980s – Liquid and Gel Rollerball
The rollerball pen came to prominence in the 1980s, just as the bright neon colours of fashion became fashionable. The liquid-based dyes and pigments of rollerball ink mean it’s available in a wider range of colours than ballpoints.
1990s – Stylus Pen
Believe it or not, the first stylus dates back to 1300BC, but seeing as iPads weren’t invented then, they were used for etching into stone rather than for touch technology. Thanks to technology, the stylus pen is reinvented for modern use, and can be used to write on paper or responsive digital displays.[
Did you know
Have you ever wondered why a pen is sometime called a Biro? It’s because the first commercially successful ballpoint pen was originally patented by Argentinian-Hungarian inventor, Laszlo Biro in 1938.
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