de Atramentis

Finally I have had the opportunity to write with deAtramentis Ink. I have been waiting for some time to be able to try this company's ink and after trying a number of bottles I must say they produce a very good ink.

Dr. Franz-Josef, of Hachenburg, Germany creates these hand-man inks. Dr. Franz-Josef operates a gallery in Hardert, Germany. The inks are part of his passion for calligraphy. The company has been producing inks for about 25 years so there is a proven track record here.

The inks are hand made, that is the entire production process is done manually in their manufacturing center. They use high quality dyes from well established European companies that include BASF and Bayer. In communicating with Franz-Josef Jansen he notes the quality of the dyes used to create the inks. The inks meet high European standards. The inks due not use dyes or additives from other countries.

The De Atramentis brand includes what could be considered traditional fountain pen inks and a broad selection of special and scented inks. the inks are made from recipes from different eras.

The ink comes in an attractive 35 ml glass bottle. He has a line of inks, known as the blacks, which come in black glass bottles, a means of protecting the ink from light.

The inks are found in pen stores world-wide with inks being available over the Internet or in retail stores. They have over 400 different inks in 709 different colours with more than 100 scents. Quite the selection.

The Bottle

The inks come in a very attractive glass bottle. The vertical height of the bottle makes is easy to get a large fountain pen nib totally in the ink, so you get a good solid fill. Brands of inks that use horizontal style bottles can have difficulty. Attractive labels, the bottle of ink will look good when it is sitting on your desk. The boxes are very attractive, a dark brown good quality cardboard, however, no label in terms of the colour of ink. The bottle holds 35 ml of ink.

Lines of Ink

• Standard Inks include an archival ink as well as a range of colours, about 60 different versions were on their web site.
• Black Edition - are standard inks in a black glass bottle, with the black glass to protect the ink for light, as light breaks down the dyes used in inks.
• People is a line of inks named, with labels for famous people. Based on some of the bottles that I have, I believe some of the colours are the same as what is found in the standard section.
• A variety of groupings such as Scented School Ink, Magic Boarding School, Myth and Tales, Zodiac, 125 Years of Automobile, Flowers, Fruits, Plants, Wines - ink with a scent of wine as well as other categories.