Ebru is an art of paper decoration by spreading paints, which do not dissolve in water, with brushes made of horse hair and rose wood on dense water that is thickened by ox gall. Shapes that look like clouds are formed during application. The word "ebri" in Persian means "looking like cloudy", and that is the root of the word "ebru" in Turkish which means marbling.

It is believed to be invented in the thirteenth century Turkistan. This decorative art then spread to China, India, Persia and Anatolia through famous Silk Road and other trade routes. Seljuk and Ottoman calligraphers and artists used marbling to decorate books, imperial decrees, official correspondence and documents (Ref: Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Turkey). New forms and techniques were perfected in the process and Turkey remained the center of marbling for many centuries