The first quality pencil was invented by mixing graphite with right kinds of clay in 1795 by a French officer Nicholas Jacques Conte. He discovered the ground graphite and when it was mixed with the right kinds of clay the lead was produced. In 1790, Austrian Joseph Hardtmuth of Koh-I-Noor discovered this method of manufacture. The first American wood pencils were made by William Munroe in 1812.
That is so awesome to know as a young artist I grew up on koh I noor and conte crayon products. Cool history website and inspiring. Who knows what new kinds of art tools will be around 200 years from now? We already have digital art and computer generated characters for movies. As art evolves I pray it will always stay close to our hearts and that old and new technology can coexist for maximum effects in our artwork. God bless, D