Definition of ink pad

The origin of the term "ink pad" can be traced back to the late 19th century when hand-printing techniques using rubber stamps became popular. At the time, rubber stamps were made by carving a design into a piece of soft rubber, then inking it by rolling it onto an ink-soaked surface, typically a flat piece of glass, masonite, or porcelain. These surfaces were known as "plates" or "slabs." As the popularity of stamp-making grew, manufacturers started selling pre-made plates and slabs for customers to use. However, these surfaces didn't always have to look like a traditional plate or slab. Some stamps used softer materials, such as erasers or modeling clay, to create the desired shape. In 1914, a company called Brunswig-Chemie, headquartered in Germany, created a new type of ink pad that used a softer, more versatile material made from a mixture of rubber and resins. This new material was easier to mold and could hold more ink than traditional plates or slabs, making it more practical for mass production. In order to distinguish the new product, Brunswig-Chemie started calling it an "ink band," as it resembled a steel band wrapped around the outside of a bottle. However, the term "ink pad" began to gain popularity in the United States when a company named Tholomat Blick sold softer ink pads, called "Tholo-Blocks," for the mass production of stamps. The term "ink pad" eventually stuck, and it is now commonly used to describe any ink-soaked surface used for dipping and rolling rubber stamps, such as those found in personal or office supply stores.