Ruddle drawing

A ruddle drawing is done with a pencil made of ruddle (or reddle). Ruddle consists of a mixture of clay and haematite, a red iron oxide used without processing. As its name implies, the characteristic color of ruddle is red. Along with chalk and charcoal, red earth-pigments are among the earliest colors and have been used for millennia. However, the use of ruddle in drawing did not become more consistent until the late 15th century. Ruddle drawings are powdery and can brush off so a fixative must be used. Nowadays ruddle is not in such common use as it once was.