'font-style:italic;' class='uawbyline'>by Pri Vag
Humans have been writing and making marks as far back as the caveman. It was the ancient Egyptians who were the first people to write on paper. In around 3000 BC the scribes from ancient Egypt used reed brushes to write on papyrus scrolls. The reed pen was used up until the Middle Ages, although the quill pen had begun to replace it as early as the 7th century.
The quill pen is made from a trimmed goose feather whose shaft has been cut into a good writing point. Trimming the quill was a real skill, and a talented scribe could create some very nice calligraphic effects.
