How Erasers are Made

How are erasers made? The lonely eraser sits on many desks and little is known about the origin of this little device of artists and writers. This simple little rubber that erases mistakes is becoming a thing of the past as many writers and artists use computers. In the art world however, the virtual eraser lives on.

Rubber in its raw form shared the same inconveniences as bread, since it was perishable and would go bad over time. In 1839, inventor Charles Goodyear discovered the process of vulcanization, a method that would cure rubber and make it a durable material. Rubber erasers became common with this advent of vulcanization.