Caran d’Ache

 and the story of the black stone

 

 

Caran d’Ache has a special link to the worlds of design, painting and writing: its name is a reference to the most important tool in drawing.

 

From its earliest days in 1915 and the official opening of the company in 1924 by Arnold Schweitzer, Caran d’Ache’s development has reflected its passion for the most beautiful materials.

 

Why Caran d’Ache? Because a leading artist of the time was a Russian, Emmanuel Poiré, and in his native tongue “Karandash” means a pencil. It is possible that neither he nor Arnold Schweitzer knew  the true origins of the word and they would be delighted to know that it comes from the Turkish “kara tash” meaning “black stone” the  natural pigment that makes marks. It is graphite, the material that helped to develop drawing and writing and is so valuable for artists and for Caran d’Ache pencils.