1. They were made from large bird feathers. A quill is a writing pen made from a primary flight feather plucked from a large bird, most commonly a goose, swan, turkey, crow, or owl!

2. Goose feathers were the absolute favorite. Goose feathers were by far the most popular choice for making quills because they were strong, plentiful, and had hollow stems that held liquid ink exceptionally well.

3. A tiny "penknife" was used to sharpen them. Quill tips wore down and flattened out after writing just a few pages. Writers carried a small, specialized folding pocket knife—called a penknife—to recut and re-sharpen the tip of their quill feather throughout the day!

4. Left-handed writers needed feathers from the right wing. The curve of a bird's flight feather naturally bends away from the writer's hand. Because of this, right-handed writers preferred feathers from a bird's left wing, while left-handed writers preferred feathers from the right wing!

5. The word "pen" comes from the Latin word for feather. The English word pen comes directly from the Latin word penna, which translates to "feather" or "wing"!

6. They had to be "baked" before making a tip. Fresh bird feathers are soft and flexible. To make a durable quill pen, craftsmen had to harden the feather stem first by burying it in hot sand or baking it before carving the tip!

7. The US Declaration of Independence was signed with quills. Famous historical documents, including the United States Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution, were hand-written and signed using goose quill pens dipped in iron gall ink in the 1700s!