Conté
DRAWING MEDIUM
Conté crayon; Conte crayon; Conte Crayon; Conte stick; Conté stick; Conté pencil; Conté sticks; Conté crayons
Conté (), also known as Conté sticks or Conté crayons, are a drawing medium composed of compressed powdered graphite or charcoal mixed with a clay base, square in cross-section. They were invented in 1795 by Nicolas-Jacques Conté, who created the combination of clay and graphite in response to the shortage of graphite caused by the Napoleonic Wars (when the British naval blockade of France prevented import).