Specific Period Pigments

 

Bear in mind that most of my experience with period pigments are late period and mostly come from Cennini. There were also multiple pigments used for each color. These are just what I preferred for what I was doing. For instance, there were TONS of whites used in period, but I use lead white because I am primarily doing whitework, and lead white really pops for that. This is meant as an introduction, not an end all for all pigments ever.

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While I do list some info on some specific pigments below, if you're wanting to really dig deeper into this sort of thing, please look at The Illuminator's Palette: A Study of Pre-Seventeenth Century Pigments for Medieval Book Art by Brittni Patterson, who is also a scribal Laurel in the SCA. This book is SO informative and it's only $4. Also, Brittni says she'll be updating it soon and if you already have it in your library, you can get the update for free!

 

Toxicity

 

Some pigments, like lead- and mercury- based pigments, can be toxic, but for adults there is usually only a danger with large dose and long term exposure. Even still, BE CAREFUL. (And if you use these, TELL THE RECIPIENT!) There is some danger for pets and children, so please keep them in a safe place, both dry and once mixed. Wear gloves, don't breathe the pigment, and don't lick your brushes, and you should be fine. For more information, please look at the MSDS sheets.

 

Here are the MSDS for lead white and vermilion.

 

White: Lead White

 

The lead white pigment I use is purchased from a company (Natural Pigments) that uses the same Dutch stacking method used in period where strips or slabs of lead were hung or stacked above a large vase of vinegar or urine, which was sealed for an extended period of time, then the white particulate scraped to produce the white pigment. This produces larger particles with a higher size variability than modern methods composed of approximately 70% lead carbonate and 30% lead hydrate, collectively referred to as dibasic lead carbonate, or lead(II) carbonate, 2PbCO3•Pb(OH)2. I have a personal preference to bind my lead white for whitework specifically with glare. It just seems to stand on the other pigments better. However, it is perfectly period and acceptable to bind it with gum arabic. When I mix lead white with other colors (like with lapis, below), then I mix with gum arabic since it rehydrates nicely.

 

Red: Vermillion

 

Vermilion is tricky. The exact hue of vermilion can be highly variable depending on preparation, the most common method in period being extracting mercury from its principle ore, cinnabar, to yield mercuric sulfide, HgS. An artificial way of producing vermilion without cinnabar was common practice by the 15th century where mercury and sulfur are heated together, the same process used by the company that produces the vermilion pigment I buy (Natural Pigments). The color dried far more orange than the dry pigment or wet paint, though the whitework lessens this effect. Cennini mentions that exposure to air can darken the coloration of vermilion, and other studies have shown that light has an additive effect to the darkening, so this may affect how dark the red in period pieces appears. Additionally, vermilion was often mixed with other colors to give an even greater variety of color, including lead red, which could be the reason for the lesser degree of orange in many originals. Even though images cannot be fully trusted for coloration, the hue is often decidedly less orange in hue than the pigment I use, though the faded look of the color could be to imaging and not color mixing. This is pure conjecture until I can see more original manuscripts up close. Since most cases of vermilion darkening are when the binder is glare instead of gum arabic, I like to bind with gum arabic since it is one of the binders suggested by Cennini.

 

Blue: Lapis Lazuli

 

Lapis lazuli almost always occurs with vast impurities of calcspar and iron pyrites, and various methods were developed to extract the pure ultramarine from the impurities, the purest form being composed of Na8-10Al6Si6O24S2-4. After initial processing, the first batch of extract was the most vibrant ultramarine color and all subsequent batches get grayer and grayer (less and less pure). These less pure ultramarines were used for shading effects rather than mixing the mineral with a lime or lead white. These days, it's almost impossible to find a range of less pure lapis pigments, so I mix my lapis with lead white to yield the same shading effect, though it appears to have less of the graying effect that is seen in the shading in the original manuscript. I am currently exploring ways to add calcspar back into lapis to re-create the gray look. While light does not have a noticeable effect on the lapis lazuli coloration, it is extremely susceptible acidic substances, which destroy some of the blue color, though acetic acids act much slower. This begs the question of the effect of the oak gall ink outline, which is acidic, on the color of the ultramarine over time, but it is impossible to tell without further testing and analysis.

 

For mixing, I have found lapis tends to appear too sheer with a 1:1 pigment:binder. I tend to go as high as 3-4 lapis to 1 binder, over water it, then let it sit until it evaporates into a sludge. That is the only way I have gotten the bold lapis color, but I don't have any documentation for this method. Alternatively, you can underpaint with azurite, another common period blue pigment.

 

Green: Terre Verte

 

(Coming Soon)