Silverpoint Dual-End Stylus

Silverpoint Dual Stylus is a 15 cm (5.75 in) long solid metal stylus with a different diameter silverpoint on each end. The stylus is a metal tube split at both ends to grasp the silverpoint or other metalpoint held tightly by sliding rings, similar to porte-crayons that hold pieces of chalk or crayon. The stylus features a knurled surface (tiny beads on the metal surface) to aid in gripping. Metal points can be easily changed to accommodate various metals and metalpoint widths. The stylus is designed to hold 0.9 mm (20 gauge) wide points on one end and 2 mm (12 gauge) wide points on the other.

Note: Points pictured are not included.

A porte-crayon is a metal tube split at the ends and held by a sliding ring to grasp the writing medium. In F.W. Fairholt’s A Dictionary of Terms in Art (1854), the porte-crayon was described as an ‘implement of brass or steel for holding the chalk or crayon in sketching, to give ease and firmness to the touch, as well as to protect the fingers from the soil of black chalks.’