But before the concoction in Europe of black ink from gall nuts (tumours that grow on trees where insects have laid eggs), real black was hard to conjure up.

但在欧洲人使用五倍子（昆虫在树上产卵留下的树瘤）配制出黑色墨水之前，人们很难想象出真正的黑色是什么样子的。