Could a chemist reproduce inks of medieval quality, then apply them to vellum?

[kckluge]

I've always had half a mind to try and make some from scratch... just need to find some suitable galls.

It will probably be easier to buy the ingredients from a lab supply store:

Those are the smallest amounts I could buy.  They are all quite cheap. I intended to make a YouTube video about it.  Maybe one day...

All the best, --stolfi

That's an interesting thought, thanks. It sounds like a more practical approach - and removes the risk of falling out of a tree 

Except that stuff made with purified lab-grade chemicals may not really match the experience (not in terms of manufacture, but in terms of texture/consistency/etc.) of doing it with something more like what would have been used in the early 15th century. Using fruit pit derived gums as a binder rather than true gum arabic (as was fairly common for cost and availability reasons) probably creates an iron gall ink that behaves somewhat differently.