ClipArt ETC

The Writing ClipArt gallery offers 58 illustrations of people writing and historic examples of written communication.

Apparatus for writting Braille

Braille Writing Tool

Apparatus for writting Braille

A piece of pasteboard or thick paper, prepared for various uses.

Card

A piece of pasteboard or thick paper, prepared for various uses.

An example of cuneform writing.

Cuneform Writing

An example of cuneform writing.

Cuneiform script.

Cuneiform

Cuneiform script.

A man signing a document with another man overseeing it.

Man Signing Document

A man signing a document with another man overseeing it.

The wrapper of a document, as of a letter.

Envelope

The wrapper of a document, as of a letter.

An illustration of an addressed envelope.

Addressed Envelope

An illustration of an addressed envelope.

An illustration of an addressed and stamped envelope.

Addressed & Stamped Envelope

An illustration of an addressed and stamped envelope.

An illustration of a young girl with her pen rested against her face.

Girl Writing

An illustration of a young girl with her pen rested against her face.

Thomas Jefferson' s writing desk

Thomas Jefferson's Writing Desk

Thomas Jefferson' s writing desk

"Below the pictured hieroglyphics in the first line is the same text in a simpler writing known as hieratic. The two systems, however, were not distinct; they were as identical as our own printed and written characters. The third line illustrates old Babylonian cuneiform, in which the characters, like the hieroglyphics, are rude and broken down pictures of objects. Derived from them is the later cuneiform shown in lines four and five."—Webster, 1913

Beginning of Written Language

"Below the pictured hieroglyphics in the first line is the same text in a simpler writing known as hieratic.…

The proper way to write a letter.

Letter Writing

The proper way to write a letter.

An illustration of a handwritten letter.

Handwritten Letter

An illustration of a handwritten letter.

Man wearing a suit at writing desk.

Man at writing desk

Man wearing a suit at writing desk.

An illustration of a man signing a scroll.

Man Signing a Scroll

An illustration of a man signing a scroll.

An illustration of a man sitting at a desk and writing in a journal.

Man Sitting at Desk & Writing in Journal

An illustration of a man sitting at a desk and writing in a journal.

Man writing at desk.

Man writing

Man writing at desk.

Man writing at desk.

Man writing

Man writing at desk.

Man standing at a writing desk entering notations into a ledger.

Man writing

Man standing at a writing desk entering notations into a ledger.

Man seated at table writing with an ink pen.

Man Writing at Table

Man seated at table writing with an ink pen.

An illustration of a man writing notes in a journal.

Man Writing in Journal at Desk

An illustration of a man writing notes in a journal.

An illustration of a man writing a letter.

Man Writing Letter

An illustration of a man writing a letter.

An illustration of a man smoking a pipe and writing a letter while holding an infant.

Man Writing Letter with Child

An illustration of a man smoking a pipe and writing a letter while holding an infant.

Saint Matthew sitting an a cloth-covered table writing the Gospel. The Holy Spirit, represented as a dove, hovers over his shoulder. Books and a human skull rest on the table. The skull, presumably, is a reference to man, the Evangelist's traditional symbol.

Saint Matthew Writing

Saint Matthew sitting an a cloth-covered table writing the Gospel. The Holy Spirit, represented as a…

Thomas Nast writing with a feather pen and ink.

Thomas Nast Writing with a Feather Pen

Thomas Nast writing with a feather pen and ink.

The name Nebuchadnezzar in cuneiform.

Nebuchadnezzar

The name Nebuchadnezzar in cuneiform.

"Papyrus, from the Collection of the New York Historical Society." — Quackenbos, 1882

Papyrus

"Papyrus, from the Collection of the New York Historical Society." — Quackenbos, 1882

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

Penmanship Posture

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

Penmanship Posture

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

Penmanship Posture

The correct posture to sit in when writing.

"Early Egyptian Pictures. Ploughing, breaking clods, and sowing."—Gordy, 1912

Early Egyptian Pictures

"Early Egyptian Pictures. Ploughing, breaking clods, and sowing."—Gordy, 1912

"These strokes are the elements of which the single stroke letters are composed." —French, 1911

Pen Practice Strokes

"These strokes are the elements of which the single stroke letters are composed." —French, 1911

Quipu is an Inca recording device.

Quipu

Quipu is an Inca recording device.

This is a pen rack intended to house pens, pencils, and other writing utensils.

Pen Rack

This is a pen rack intended to house pens, pencils, and other writing utensils.

"The lower case or small letters of this style are drawn with bodies two-thirds the height of the capitals. This letter is generally known as the Reinhardt letter, in honor of Mr. Charles W. Reinhardt, Chief of the Drafting Department of the 'Engineering News,'..." —French, 1911

Basis of Reinhardt Letter

"The lower case or small letters of this style are drawn with bodies two-thirds the height of the capitals.…

Writing materials from the Roman empire.

Roman Writing Materials

Writing materials from the Roman empire.

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this stone the same inscription was given in three different sets of characters, -the hieroglyphics, the demotic text (a briefer and more running form of hieroglyphics, commonly used in the papyri or manuscripts), and the Greek. By comparing the letters in certain Greek proper names with the letters of the same words in the Egyptian texts, the sounds for which the Egyptian characters stood were discovered. This image represents Cleopatra, or Kleopatra." —Colby, 1899

Rosetta Stone

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this…

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this stone the same inscription was given in three different sets of characters, -the hieroglyphics, the demotic text (a briefer and more running form of hieroglyphics, commonly used in the papyri or manuscripts), and the Greek. By comparing the letters in certain Greek proper names with the letters of the same words in the Egyptian texts, the sounds for which the Egyptian characters stood were discovered. The Greek text, when translated, showed that the inscription was an ordinance of the priests decreeing certain honors to Ptolemy Epiphanes on the occasion of his coronation, 196 B.C. (Ptolemy Epiphanes was one of a line of Greek sovereigns who ruled over Egypt from the time of its conquest by Alexander in the fourth century, to the first century B.C.) It contains a command that the decree should be inscribed in the sacred letters (hieroglyphics), the letters of the country (demotic), and Greek letters, -and this for the convenience of the mixed population of Egypt under its Greek rulers. It was natural to conclude that the three texts were the same in substance, and accordingly earnest efforts were made to decipher the hieroglyphics by aid of the Greek. The first clew was obtained by noticing that certain groups of the hieroglyphic characters were inclosed in oval rings, and that these groups corresponded in relative position with certain proper names, such as Ptolemy, etc., in the Greek text. The following line presents a few of the characters with a group in the oval ring. (Each word is read from right to left)." —Colby, 1899

Excerpt from the Rosetta Stone

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this…

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this stone the same inscription was given in three different sets of characters, -the hieroglyphics, the demotic text (a briefer and more running form of hieroglyphics, commonly used in the papyri or manuscripts), and the Greek. By comparing the letters in certain Greek proper names with the letters of the same words in the Egyptian texts, the sounds for which the Egyptian characters stood were discovered. This image represents Ptolemy or Ptolemaios." —Colby, 1899

Rosetta Stone Sample

"In 1799, the Rosetta Stone was found and gave the first key to the reading of hieroglyphics. On this…

"The Rosetta Stone." — Quackenbos, 1882

Rosetta Stone, Full View

"The Rosetta Stone." — Quackenbos, 1882

A fragment of an Ancient Egyptian text, which provided the key to the modern understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphics.

The Rosetta Stone, Front View

A fragment of an Ancient Egyptian text, which provided the key to the modern understanding of Egyptian…

"In the Nile valley there had been found a few ancient inscriptions, carved upon stone in unknown characters, but no one could read them. The, about 1800 A.D., some soldiers of Napoleon in Egypt, while laying foundations for a fort, found a slab of black rock bearing three inscriptions. One of the inscriptions was in Greek, one was in the ancient hieroglyphics of the pyramids, and the third was in a later Egyptian writing, which had likewise been been forgotten." - West, 1904

Portion of Rosetta Stone

"In the Nile valley there had been found a few ancient inscriptions, carved upon stone in unknown characters,…

Saint Luke writing the gospel accompanied by an ox.

Saint Luke Writing

Saint Luke writing the gospel accompanied by an ox.

A piece of embroidery or needlework produced as a demonstration or test of skill. This sampler includes the alphabet, as well as the student's name and age. These pieces often include figures, motifs, and decorative borders.

American Sampler

A piece of embroidery or needlework produced as a demonstration or test of skill. This sampler includes…

A scroll used to present writing.

Scroll

A scroll used to present writing.

"A circular box used for covering and protecting a seal. Old documents were commonly sealed by means of a ribbon which passed through the parchment, and to which was affixed a large circular wax seal, not attached to the parchment itself, but hanging below its edge. The skippet used to protect such a seal was commonly turned of wood, like a shallow box, with a cover formed of a simple disk of wood held to the box by strings passed through eyelet-holes." -Whitney, 1889

Skippet - Open Box with a Seal Inside

"A circular box used for covering and protecting a seal. Old documents were commonly sealed by means…

"Solon's Tablets." — Quackenbos, 1882

Solons Tablets

"Solon's Tablets." — Quackenbos, 1882

A series of correspondence on clay tablets between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru.

The Amarna Tablet

A series of correspondence on clay tablets between the Egyptian administration and its representatives…

A set of writing tablets.

Writing Tablets

A set of writing tablets.

Tablets used by children for writing exercises.

Writing Exercise Tablets

Tablets used by children for writing exercises.

"Washington's writing case, Revolutionary relics."—Lossing, 1851

Washington's Writing-Case

"Washington's writing case, Revolutionary relics."—Lossing, 1851

A sculpture of a woman holding a writing utensil and a document.

Woman Sculpture

A sculpture of a woman holding a writing utensil and a document.

A woman sitting at a desk, writing on parchment.

Woman Writing

A woman sitting at a desk, writing on parchment.

An illustration of a woman writing a letter.

Woman Writing Letter

An illustration of a woman writing a letter.

A writer trying to find inspiration.

Writer

A writer trying to find inspiration.

"A large tablet with linear script found in the palace at Gnossus, Crete. There are eight lines of writing with a total of about twenty words. Notice the upright lines which appear to mark the termination of each group of signs."—Webster, 1913

Cretan Writing

"A large tablet with linear script found in the palace at Gnossus, Crete. There are eight lines of writing…

"1, 'war' (Dakota Indian); 2, 'morning' (Ojibwa Indian); 3, 'nothing' (Ojibwa Indian); 4 and 5, 'to eat' (Indian, Mexican, Egyptian, etc)."—Webster, 1913

Examples of Picture Writing

"1, 'war' (Dakota Indian); 2, 'morning' (Ojibwa Indian); 3, 'nothing' (Ojibwa Indian); 4 and 5, 'to…

"Picture writing of the Tahltan, a British Columbia tribe. The drawing was done in charcoal on the blazed trunk of a tree. The meaning is: 'Using a raft, I shot three geese.'"—Webster, 1913

Indian Picture Writing

"Picture writing of the Tahltan, a British Columbia tribe. The drawing was done in charcoal on the blazed…