Quill pens are made from the feathers of large birds. In the past, most of them were taken from the wings of geese. After degreasing and hardening, the pen tips could be sharpened. Before the invention of dip pens, fountain pens and ballpoint pens with metal nibs in the West, quills were the main writing tools, and they had to be dipped in ink before writing. Hand-cut quills are the tool of choice for writing Western calligraphy, producing different strokes and toughness than metal pens. The quill barrel can absorb ink and provide continuous water supply due to capillary action when writing.