{"id":17139,"date":"2014-01-21T09:04:08","date_gmt":"2014-01-21T09:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/?p=17139"},"modified":"2025-09-10T10:10:49","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T09:10:49","slug":"traditional-metal-point-drawing-materials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonsart.com\/blog\/2014\/01\/21\/traditional-metal-point-drawing-materials\/","title":{"rendered":"Traditional Metal Point Drawing Materials"},"content":{"rendered":"

The drawing pencils we know today are made of graphite which became popular as a material for drawing towards the end of the 16th century. Before then drawings were made using a variety of metal sticks. Many of the lovely drawings of the Renaissance period were done using these ‘metal points’. Lead point was the easiest of metals for the artist to use because it didn’t require the paper to be coated with a slightly toothy surface like silverpoint did. The drawback is that lead is a very soft metal which blunts very easily so the point must be re-shaped often. It was often alloyed with tin to make it harder and reduce the need for constant re-shaping.<\/big><\/p>\n

Today we still talk about the core of a graphite pencil or coloured pencil as a ‘lead’. We also sell graphite sticks, thin and also 2mm, that are called ‘leads’ and the holder for the loose leads is called a ‘clutch pencil’ or ‘lead holder’. Some sizes of the clutch lead holders work well with silver rods. <\/p>\n

Some examples of silverpoint drawings from the 15-17th centuries:
\n