write on papyrus. Knowledge of hieroglyphs was at the time highly restricted. Only scribes knew the full array of hieroglyphs and would write on behalf of their employers, usually the pharaoh. After Rome invaded Egypt, inkwells became more popular in Italy as a larger percentage of the population were capable of writing.

Inkwells gradually fell out of use in the middle part of 20th century as the reservoir fountain pen (which needs to