Giles Lodges Lute Book

Below is a basic semi-diplomatic transcription of instructions for making black ink taken from Giles Lodge's Lute Book. These transcriptions were originally created as part of the Practical Paleography Series, sponsored by EMMO.

Transcription V.a.159 fol.60v - 61r, 60v

60v
To make black incke
Take a gallon of raine water or worte, &
put in hit a pounde of gaull a pound of gumm​​
halfe a pound of grene coperas, & stear them​
Blacke incke ​to gether everye day, yower gaull most be
brocke in great peces, & yower gumm​​es most
be put in ij or iij dayes after yower stuffe
& lett hit be storyd everye daye for the
space of an wecke, & whan it hathe stande
a moneth it will be good.
To make gumm​​e for incke​
Take the whittes of egges & put them​ in a
Gumm​​e​ bladder & hange it in a smocke vntill it be
drye, & it will be gumm​​e for incke.

61r​
To make read incke ​f..i
ffirst make oyle wi​t​h​ the whitt of a nege, as
this, Take th​e ​whyet of a nege & with a locke
of fine whitt woll wringe hit thorow vj or
vij times vntill ye se th​a​t​ all th​e​ whit is turned
to water & will drope from the wooll, then is
Readd ​incke​ hit fine oyle. Or els ye may take vpe the
whitt wi​t​h​ a sponge & wringe hit thorow as
befor. Now take vermelon & grind hit apon
a marble stone drye wi​t​h​ a moller halfe a qu​^artr
of an hower, then put to a litle of you​^r ​oyle
& grind hit as mutch longer wi​t​h ​the oyle, &
yf ye take paine to grind you^r​ vermelon an
hower ye shalbe most surest to haue you^​r​
incke myche the fyner, for all th​e​ masterye
of​

61v
of ​this inke do lye in th​e​ longe & fine grin​​dinge
as I haue often proved. yf hit benot well grou"​​n"d
th​e l​esse you^​r​ labor for it will flyter a way.
Nowe put hit into a cleare horne & store hit
alway wi​t​h​ a stycke when ye wyll occupye eny
of hit & let th​e​ sticke drape into the pene, & so
writ wi​t​h ​hit. Keape hit in no nother vessell
but in a horne or glasse, for if ye do I know
th​a​t ​all kinde of mettell as ledd, tine, brasse, cop​er​
wi​t​h ​such lyke will corrupt you​r ​yncke in shorte
space. And yf ye haue kept you^​r​ incke longe
that th​e​ oyle do smell put to hit halfe a dosen
drapps of pysse and store hit, & that will make hit
sweat againe. or els ye most put out th​e​ oile old
& put in new. & then ye be shure of good.