The Terminology of Drafting

Draughtsman

The person who makes drawings. Now known as "Drafter".

Cartography

The Fine Art of making maps.

Cartographer

A person who makes maps.

Dividers

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

An adjustable device made of either an iron or brass that allows the user to transfer a distance taken from the scale to the drawing or vice versa.

The Scale

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

The Eighteenth Century Drafting Scale is normally made of ivory and was expensive due to the fact that the actual scales were scrimshawed by hand and had to be accurate to be of any use the the Draughtsman.

The Protractor

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

A semi circular device used to mark an angle on a drawing. Within limits, the larger the protractor, the better the accuracy. The very best often have a radius of a foot or more and are divided into degrees and tenths of a degree.

The Parallel Rule

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

The parallel rule is used to chart a straight line across a chart or drawing. This is accomplished by holding one blade firmly while sliding the other in a see saw motion until the intersecting line is reached.

The Quill Pen

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

 

The Quill made the first practical pen. Actually, the term quill means any single feather of substantial size and heft. The best quill pens are made of goose and crow feathers although turkey, parrot, peacock and many other varieties of feathers have been used with great success.

In general, the smaller the diameter of the shaft, the finer the point, and thus the finer the line it makes.

The Steel Pen

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

The iron (steel) pen first came into common usage about 1700 ad. It has two distinct advantages over the quill, it can be adjusted to make a variety of line widths and that it wears like... well like iron.

Ink

Ink comes in a dizzying array of colors and tints, from black to white and reds, blues, greens, and browns. Fine Black Ink comes from the ink sacs of cuttlefish (squid). Red Ink derives its brilliant color from the chochineal beetle. The body of this insect is ground and dissolved to produce a brilliant permanent red ink. Blues come primarily from three sources: Lapis Lazilu which European monistaries used for centuries to illuminate their manuscripts as well as Indigo (which came from india and was sometimes hard to get) and finally, the North American Inkberry which makes a excellent permanent blue-black color. Browns come from either Ocher or the Walnut tree.

The Pencil

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

 

Unlike the pencil of today, the Eighteenth Century pencil came from France. It was a mixture of graphite and very finely ground clay and was not encased in wood. These pencils [or more properly called crayons] came in soft, medium and hard and could be had in a number of colors. (The original French company, Conte, is still making these pencils for artists).

Incidentally, there is such a thing as a "lead" pencil (on the left in the picture). It is shaped like a long thin bar and hammered to a point. And while you can write with a lead pencil, It produces a soft gray smudge for a line and, thus, is limited in its uses. By the early 1820's, the wood encased "pencil" (on the right in the photo), began to make it to the market. These pencils proved more effective than the original French pencil for the precise drawing needs of the draftsman and soon became the standard. As the pencil grew in popularity other shapes like round lead, shown above also became common.

The Straight Edge

The draughtsman's straight edge is normally a wooden T-Square with a long blade. It is used whenever the drafter wants to draw a straight line. And since it has a "head" affixed at right angles to its blade, it can be used to draw multiple parallel lines when held against the side of a drawing board.

The Triangle

 

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

 

Like the T-square, triangles were made of wood and came in many sizes from the tiny three inch to the mammoth three feet. Triangles also come in two basic angles: the 45° and the 30°. Although rare, some triangles were made with odd angles and were largely designed for specific purposes such as 22.5° for determining the angles between the sides of an octagon.

The French Curve

Photo: AE Palmer © 2003

The wooden French curve, unlike the triangle, comes in a bewildering array of sizes and shapes. the S-shaped curve is traditional. It is designed such that no two points on the curve have precisely the same radius. It is useful in connecting any three points with a smooth transitional curve.

Drafting Cloth

True Eighteenth Century Drafting cloth was tightly woven material, usually cotton (cheaper) or silk (costly). It would be stretched, sized with hide glue and finally primed with a white lead gesso (paint).

It would be held to the drafting board with gutta percha which is very much like modern day rubber cement. Gutta Percha had to be imported from India and mixed fresh every few days.