ANCIEiNT AND MODERN COLOURS, FROM THE EARLIEST PERIODS TO THE PRESENT TIME : WITH THEIR CHEMICAL AND AETISTICAL PEOPEETIES. BY WILLIAM LINTON. LONDON : LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, and LONGMAN. 1852. TRIXTED BY HARRISON AND SON, :.0?; MeXavTrjgia ^TlfXlil OILS. Kapvivov MrjK KoXxoig.'^ " Tovto Ss (pacnv tlvai (stti) Kprjixvuiv, o KaTajSdWovai To'ievovTig,'" — Theophrastus ; PZmy, xxxiii. 7. " 'Ek XiQov TLvbg fisfxiy fievov Ty apyvp'iTiSi \pdfifH{)." — Diosc. v. 109. ^ TLivvd^api oiovTa'i riveg tuvtov vTrepex^'-v '''^ KaXov/xevtf dfiiJii(i)." — Diosc. V. 109. ^ " Enumerat auctores Verrius, quibus credere sit necesse, Jovis ipsius simulacri faciem diebus fastis minio [Vermilion] iliini solitam, triumphan turn que corpora: sic Camillus triumphasse. Cinna- bari veteres, quae etiam nunc vocant monochromata, pingebant." — Pliny, xxxiii. 7. " To de /car' ipyaaiav VTrkp 'Ecpeaov [iiKpbv ivog tottov p-ovov. EoTt S' dixfxog, 7]v (TvXXsyovai XafjurvpiZovaav, KaOdTTsp 6 icoKKog.'* — Theophr.; Vitr. vii. 8 ; Flint/, xxxiii, 7. 8 '* Solis atque lunse inimicus ; remediura, ut parieti siccato eera punica cum oleo liquefacta candens setis inducatur," &c. — Pliny, xxxiii. 7; Vitr. vii. 9. ^ Davy's Colours, &c. ANCIENT COLOUES. 7 KLvvd^apL tvhiKov.^ DEAaoN's Blood.* There was a dark resinous red colour from India called Kivva^api (according to Pliny, the true Cinnabar) in ancient times. ^ Vivtrai Kal kv avry Kal KivvdjSapi, to Xsyofxtvov ivdiKov, airo rdv devdpujv cjg daKpv crvvayoiievov." — Arrian, in periplo, c. 10. 2 Dragon's blood, or, when pure, Draconina, is obtained from the gum resin so called, which is produced by several species of calamus, also by Dracoena draco and Pterocarpus draco." — Dr. Turner. "AfjifjiLov} Minium (hod.) Eed Lead. Burnt Massicot, a Sesquioxide of Lead ; first used by Mcias.^ The Asiatic is now the best. Eed Lead is Sandyx.^ Dioscorides says that Bed Lead is the Sandyx of some authors.'* Some call Minium Cinnabar.^ Pliny and Vitruvius call Bed Lead Sandarach,®^and the latter says that it is better than the native ^Sandarach, or Bed Orpiment.' Davy found Minium (Bed Lead) in the Baths of Titus, and says that the ancients used many shades of burnt Cerussa, or "White Lead.^ When Pliny and Yitruvius speak of Minium, they mean Vermilion. ^ Uioscorides. 2 *'Usta casu reperta incendio Pirsei, cerussa in orcis cremata." — Pliny, XXXV. 6. ^ Galen. ^ "To o'vTi)} (JKevaaQkv ffdvdv^, vtto tivojv Xsycrai," v. 103 ; in vphich see process. ^ " Minium quidem cinnabari." — P^my, xxxiii. 7. ^ "Cerussa sane usta, quam et Sandaracham quidam vocitarunt." — Celsus, vi. 6. 7 "Et ea multo meliorem usum prsestat quam quae de metallis per se nata fodatur." — Vitr. vii. 12. ^ Davy's Works. 8 AlfClEFT COLOUES, MtKros ^ (t6')(^vlko<;). OcJira usta? Buent Ochee", Burnt Yellow Ochre quenched with Vinegar, " efficitur purpureo colore."^ The greater the heat applied, the deeper and more fiery the colour.* Burnt Ochre is much used by painters for shadows.^ It is another colour of the class (M/Xto?) so familiar to the ancients ; and is said by Theophrastus to have been first used by Kidias.^ This colour, united to Sandarach, made Pliny's Sandy X. " At Eome, Red Lead is imitated by burnt Marble flushed with acid.'" There is a picture on the walls of Pompeii painted with Eed and Yellow Ochres.® ^ Theophrastus. — " Fivtrai [iiKroq kuI sk rijg wxP«e Kara Koiofxivng;^' — Ilfiot XiObJv; also Dioscorides, TtKToviicrj. — Id. 2 ''Et picta coloribus ustis." — Ovid, Fasti, 10; ''Tabulasque coloribus ustis." — Id. ^ Vitr. vii. 11 ; Pliny, xxxv. 6» '* ""0(T(^ d' dv jxaWov 7rvpu)9u>(7i, to(70vt(^ fidWov ^{Kavrkpav Koi dv9paK(i)de(TTspav iroiovai." Theophrastus, Trepi X'lQwv. 5 " Sine usta non fiunt umbrae." — Pliny, xxxv. 6. 6 Id., et Theophrastus. 7 Fit et Romse cremato sile marmoroso, et restincto aceto." — Plint/, xxxv. 6. ^ Davy. MiXtos^ ] Buhrica^ ] -r. ^ > . > jNative Eed Ochee. ^ivoTTLKT}.^ J Smopica. J Native Sinoper, a red earth or Ochre of various tints and qualities, from the purple-tinged Indian Eed to the common Eeddle or earthy Bole. It was called M/Xto? by the Gi-reeks, and Eubrica by the Eomans. " The first comes from Sinope, a city of Poutus in Cappadocia ; the best ^ Theophrastus ; Galen ; Dioscorides. ^ Dioscorides. ^ Pliny. ANCIENT COLOTJES. 9 from Lemnos. It is also found in Egypt and Spain.* E-ubrica is also made from burnt Ochres, an invention of Kidias, but its quality is considered inferior. °" Pliny says there are three different qualities of Sinoper (^/lliXtos). In many of the frescoes of the earliest Egyptian tombs scarcely any colours are employed besides those which may be produced by ferruginous combinations : the reds, browns, and yeUows, being all Ochres. The ruins of Nineveh also exhibit abundant evidence of the familiarity of the Assyrians with the earthy oxides, as well as with other colours.^ The prows of Ulysses' ships were painted with Red Ochre (" /*t\T07ra/>9/ot," II. ii.) Pliny mentions an Armenian Bole, a coarse red earth.'' Davy found a purplish red and a dull red, in the Baths of Titus, which were both Ochres ; and in the Nozze Aldo- brandini he says the reds are all Ochres. Diosc. V. 3 ; Pliny, xxxv. 6 ; Vitr. vii. 7. " BtXrior/? ct coKti fjLiXrog Tj Keia dvai," — Theoph. tt. X. 5 " Tiverai ds kuI Ik Trjg w^pag Karaxai-OfxevriQ, aXXd x^^iptuv ' to S' svpijixa Kvdiov." — Fd. ^ See Notes below, on Assyrian and Egyptian Colours. * 7 xxxv. 6. * Assyrian Colours. — The coloiirs which have revealed themselves during Dr. Layard's excavations at Nineveh display sufficient evidence that they are not inferior to those of the ancient Egyptians, either in number, variety, or brilliancy. Instead of the common earthy Bole or Reddle of the latter people, the Assyrians have left us a colour almost equal to Vermilion itself. The monochrome pictures, which represented the Chaldseans on the wall (Ezekiel xxiii. 14), are said by Gesenius, the Septuagint, and the Vulgate, to have been painted with B 8 10 ANCIENT COLOTJES. Sinoper or Rubrica (fiiXTog), a native earthy oxide, like Indian Red 5 whilst both the great English versions of the Bible now in use, as well as the Rabbis, translate the word at issue ("Shashar," Jeremiah xxii. 14) Vermilion. At Khorsabad it appears that the Red approached in hue to that brilliant colour, whilst the sculptures at Nimroud exhi- bited a bright Crimson or Lake tint. Dr. Layard thinks there is no doubt of their having made great use of vegetable colours, the mate- rials for which are so plenteous in the vicinity of Nineveh. The rapid evanescence of some specimens of blue and red on plaster, which were bright and perfect in colour when first exposed, would appear to favour a vegetable origin, as no susceptibility of the kind is known to characterise any mineral Reds or Blues with which we are at present acquainted. Dr. Layard claims, for the older Assyrian period, the same colours which have been attributed to the early times of the Egyptians, viz. — Blue, Red, Yellow, Black, and White. ^ He also speaks of a Green on the earlier monuments of Nimroud ; and of Green, Purples, Violet, Brown, &c. enamelled in paintings of figures on bricks, at the north- west palace. In allusion to the analysis of Sir Gardner Wilkinson's specimens of the Alexandrian Blue, by Dr. Ure, Dr. Layard conjectures that the colouring principle may be the same, but affirms that the Assyrian blue is much brighter. He concludes that the colour was derived from copper, as he found an old mine of that ore in the neighbourhood of Nineveh. The Doctor considers the Greens of Assyria to be similar to those of Egypt, which are in many instances composed of Iron Ochre and Copper Blue. The Yellows and Blacks, also, he conceives to resemble those from Egypt ; and as specimens of the latter class of pigments, he mentions Calcined Bone, and Black Iron Ochre. The Whites are of Alabaster and Gypsum. At Khorsabad, the French antiquarian, M. Botta,^ found Green, Red, Black, White, Yellow, and Blue ; the latter very lively in colour. Since writing the above, a small portion of the Blue colour has been analyzed by Mr. Warrington. It proves to be a Silicate of ^ See Wilkinson's Ancient Egyptians. 2 Lettres de M. Botta sur les decouvertes a Khorsabad, &c. &c. Paris, 1845. ANCIEN'T COLOUES. 11 Copper, doubtless identical with the celebrated Alexandrian Blue, first invented by a king of Egypt, and so much esteemed by the ancients : — the Kvavog Texvr]TOQ of Theophrastus. The brilliancy and power of this ancient colour have not yet been equalled by modern chemists. Egyptian Colours. — Blues. — " Sandy texture, — blue glass. On a chemical examination of this vitreous matter the presence of copper became evident." — Dr. Ure, in Wilkinson. All appear to be oxides of Copper : no analysis showed Cobalt ; merely Copper and a little Iron." — Prof. John.^ Indigo was found on Mummy cloths.^ Reds. — "A mere earthy Bole." — Dr. Ure. "There were brown reds and brick -coloured reds. The Brown colour often occurs in the faces of the figures painted on Mummy cases, — a brown-red Oxide of Iron, mixed with Lime. Cinnabar was the substance with which the statues of the Ethiopian gods were coloured. Red ochrous earths were employed by the painters. The mummy-cloths showed a red- dish coloured dye from Madder, which was badly separated from the Yellow." — Prof. John. Yellows. — " A yellow Iron Ochre." — Dr. Ure. " Are often very pure, and of a bright sulphur-colour: — such were vegetable colours. Yellow Ochres were also employed by the painters." — Prof John. Greens. — " Blue glass in powder, with a little ochre." " The green pigment scraped from a painting in distemper, resisted the solvent action of muriatic acid, but became thereby of a brilliant blue colour, in consequence of the abstraction of a small portion of Yellow Ochrous matter from the artificial Cyanus of Theophrastus." — Dr. Ure. " Those on the stuccos and the catacombs at Thebes are a mixture of a yellow vegetable pigment with a Copper Blue, and held on by glue-water. The vegetable yellow might possibly be the Henne plant, still much used in the East."— Pro/. John, Blacks. — " Calcined bones." — Dr. Ure. "The lees of wine calcined, burnt pitch, charcoal, and soot." — Prof John. Whites. — " A very pure chalk." — Dr. Ure. " Lime and gypsum." — Prof. John. " The ancients practised Calico printing in a manner similar to the moderns.' ' — Davy. ^ Egyptian Antiquities. 2 See an account of Mummy-cloths by Jas. Thomson, Esq., F,R,S. 12 ANCIENT COLOURS. De la soie teinte en couleurs qui n'ont rien perdu de leur vivacite, malgre trente siecles ecoules depuis ce temps-la."^ " The mummies without number, which have been preserved to us through so long a succession of ages, should be enough to obtain for the Egyptians the glory of having carried chemistry to a degree of perfection attained by very few. There is, in the mummies only, an assemblage of chemical operations of which some are even yet unknown, notwithstanding the endeavours of the most experienced moderns to reproduce them," ^ - Origine des decouvertes attribuees aux Modernes, par M. L. Dutens, (p. 179.) London, 179G. 2 Idem. nop(f)ijpa^ Ostrtm.^ Tyrian Purple, The renowned Tyrian dye was taken from a white vein in the throat of the shell fish Purpurea.^ It was of a dark-red colour, resembling a deep rose. The Pur- purse of the best description were chiefly found on the rocks of Tyre, on the coast of Asia; they were also caught at Meninge, on the Graetulan shores, in Africa ; and on the coast of Lacouia, in Europe.* The colour varied according to the locality in which the purple fishes were taken. Those from Pontus and Glalatia, being in the north, produced a black dye ; in the equi- noctial regions a violet hue predominated ; whilst in the ^ Theophrastus. Dioscorides. ^ Vitruvius. ^ " Sed Purpuras florem ilium tingendis expetitum vestibus, in mediis habent faucibus. Liquoris hie minimi est in Candida vena, unde pretiosus ille bibitur, nigrantis rosse colore sublucens." — Pliny, ix. 36. ^ Pliny, ix. 36 ; Pausanias, in Laconica, p. 202. ANCIENT COLOURS. 13 south, as at liliodes,^ the colour was of a richer red. These purple fishes were also called Pelagia; and they were distinguished by the district, as well as by the food which the district supplied. The Lutense lived in the mud ; the Algense on seaweed, the worst kind of all ; and the Taniense, which frequented the bays and coasts, yielded the best, though not the deepest in colour. " There are also the Calculosse, which live in the gravel or shingly bottoms ; and, last and most esteemed among the whole, the Dialeta, which are confined by their habits to no particular shore or food."^ Aristotle states that the largest fish come from the north, which are of a dark colour; and the smaller ones from the south, which are of a brighter red or yellow colour.' Two hundred Buccina were added to one hundred and eleven Pelagian purples, to make the purple colour so much eulogized by Pliny, and one of the three shades of purple recorded by the ancients.® The second of the three shades was the Punic or Phoenician Purple 'Red of Tyre and Tarentum, — vko9). Its colour was Red (Purpura), and it was employed as a ground in the stuffs, to prepare them for the better absorption and retention of the Tyrian or Madder Crim- sons, with which they were afterwards completed. " Hysgino maxime inficitur, rubiamque cogitur sor- bere." ^ ' Vitr. Pliny. ^ Pliny, XXXV. 6. According to Pliny (ix. 41), the colour of Hysginum is between purple and coccos. See note on Pliny in article Tlop(n, irtXayiov, Kai iv Kprjrri de (pverai Trpbg ry yy iiri tojv Trerpwj/ -n-Xeiarov kuI KaWiffTov, (BcLTTTOvcnv ov fiovov rag Tifiviag, dWd /eat epia Kai ifidna ' Kai 'iojg dv y TrpoacpaTog r} ^a^tf, ttoXv KaXX'ioJv r} xpoa Trjg TTopcpvpag." — Theophr. Hist. Plant, lib. iv. c. 6. BLIJES. "la-an^? Glastwm? Woad.' " All the Britons stain themselves with Woad, which produces a blue colour."* " With the plant which the French call Glastum, the wives and maidens of the Britons completely stain their bodies ; and, on certain festal days, they go naked to the temples."^ ' Dioscorides. Theophr. ^ piiny. ^ Isatis tinctoria. — 'Yaarig r\\itpog, y o\ (Sa^tlg xpii)VTai." — Dioscor. ii. 215. '* Omnes se Britanni luteo inficiunt, quod et cseruleum efficit colorem." — Cmar, de Bello Gallico, v. 14. ^ " Simile plantagini glastum in Gallia vocatum, quo Britannorum conjuges nurusque toto corpora oblitse, quibusdam in sacris et nuda incedunt, ^thiopum colorem imitantes." — Pliny, xxii. 1. "The Ethiopians had half their bodies painted with Gypsum, the other half with Vermilion." — Edit. Egypt. Antiq. Dr. Turner, in his Chemistry, (by Liebig and Gregory,) speaks of a Woad Yellow, or Luteolum — Reseda luteola. ANCIENT COLOURS. HaTTcjieLpo^.^ TJlteamaeine (Native). Lapis Lazuli (hod.) The female Cyanus of Theo- plirastus, which is brighter than the male. Its colour is proof against fire. The native Cyauus of Theophrastus consists of two kinds, male and female.^ Beckmann says he can affirm, with certainty, that Lapis Lazuli was the Sapphire of the ancients.^ ' " 'SaTT^upoQ Xi9oc."~Dioscorides, Theophrastus, Galen. ^ " KaXtTrai Kai Kvavog 6 jxtv dppr]v 6 OrjXvg ' fxeXavrepog 6 apprjv." — Theophrastus, tt.X. ; Plmy, xxxvii. 9 ; Galen, 9. ^ History of Inventions, vol. ii., p. 322. Kvavo'^} Coerulevm? " Kvavo? at'To0f^v." The male Y^vavo^ (or Cyanus) of Theophrastus, which is darker than the female.^ Its colour is destroyed by fire. It is a native blue Carbo- nate of Copper. Dioscorides describes Kvavov as coming from the copper mines.^ He also mentions a lighter Blue of this kind, which he calls Armenion (Apixeviov), friable, smooth, and free from grit a colour, says Aetius, which painters employ.^ Being paler in colour, some have ^ Theophrastus. Dioscorides. Galen. - Pliny. ^ Theophrastus, see note on 2a7rcf)£f|Ooc. " ILvai'OQ de yevaTai jxkv iv Ki'Trpt^ £« tmv xaXKOvpywv j^israX- Xcojk" — V. 106. * " ' Apjxtviov dt TTpoKpiTeov TO Xuov Kai TO xpwfta Kvdi'sov rt dyav Kai ctXiBov, Ev9pv[3eQ.'^ — v. 105. ^ " 'ApfieviciKoi^, q) 01 Zv) iraxvTaTwv /xeXavTaTov." — Theo- phrastus, tt.X. ^ " Scythicum, quumque teritur, in quatuor colores mutatur, candi- diorem, nigrioremque, crassiorem, tenuioremve. Prsefertur huic etiamnum Cyprium," &c. — Pliny, xxxiii. 13. Kvavos Te')(yrjTo<^^ Cyanus Egyptius. Egyptian Blue. A Silicate of Copper. The artificial Cyanus of Theo- phrastus ; said to have been invented by a king of Egypt.^ The Coeruleum of Yitruvius.^ The mode of ' Theophrastus. 2 "Hq TTpdJrof; f3a xpvfroKoXXav." — Theophrastus, tt. X. ^ HgvaoKoWa dLacp'spei rj 'ApfiEviaKrj, ry XP^^ KaKUKopu)^ TrpacTiKovcra ' Sevrspevei ds r) MaKsdoviKr], ilra rj Kvirpia, /cat Tavrrjg Ttjv KaOapav TrpoKpiTeov." — Diosc. v. 104. ^ "Luteam putant a Ittto herba dictam, quam ipsa casruleo sub- tritam, pro chrysocolla inducunt, vilissimo genere atque fallacissimo." — Pliny, xxxiii. 5. 7 ' ' Qui non possunt chrysocolla propter caritatem uti, herba quae Itltum [yellow] appellatur, cseruleum inficiunt, et utuntur viridissimo colore." — Vitr. vii. 14. AITCIENT COLOUES. 27 jecture tliat the G-reen of the later monuments of Assyria was formed by a similar admixture of Ochre with the blue Oxide of Copper."^ " All the Greens in the Baths of Titus, and in the Nozze Aldobrandini, were combi- nations of Copper," " The Carbonates of Copper, which contain an oxide and an acid, have changed very little." ^ Davy found a Verona-green earth near the Pyramid of Caius Cestius, in E,ome ; also a second colour, a pale grass-green Carbonate of Copper and Chalk ; a third was Copper mixed with blue Copper frit. He also found an extremely brilliant Grreen in the Baths of Titus, a pure Carbonate of Copper.^° s See Layard's Nineveh; and Dr. Ure, in Wilkinson's Egyptians. ^ Davy. ^0 ** I am fully of opinion, that the Cyanus of Theophrastus, the Cseruleum of Pliny, and the Chrysocolla, were the blue copper earth," &c. &c. ! I — Bechnann, vol. iii., p. 337. GeoBoTLOv,^ Terra Viridis. Yeeoxa Gtbeeis'. A green earth, a painter's colour; from the grounds of Theodosius, in the vicinity of Smyrna. Sir Humphrey Davy found an olive-green earth near the tomb of Caius Cestius, in Eome, which was Verona Green, or Terra Verde. This green earth of Theodosius was of the same character. M. Chaptal found a Verona-green earth in a shop at Pompeii. 1 '* Creta viridis pluribus locis nascitur, sed optima Smyrnse. Hanc auteni Grsece ^soCotlov vocant, quod Theodotus nomine fuerat, cujus in fundo id genus cretae primus est inventum." — Vitmvius, vii. 7. c 2 28 ANCIENT COLOlJES. T\pa£pei rj 'lovdaiKrj Trjg Xonrrjg." — Dioscor. i. 99. ^ ** E Judsese lacu, ut diximus, emergens." — Pliny, xxxv. 15. ■* *' Bituminis probatio, ut quam maxime splendeat, sitque ponde- rosum ac grave." — Id. ^ Terrain Syria, circa Sidonem oppidum maritimum." — Id. ^ Tow VayciTov TrpoKpirsov tov tux^ojQ i^aTTTOfievov, /cat aa(pa\T'iZ,ovTa ry oafxy.*' — Dioscorides, v. 146 ; Pliny, xxxvi. 18. " Xpoiy 6' aiOaXoeig," &c. — Orpheus, Uepl K'lQiov. — v. 470. ^ 'O Xtyofievog QpaKiag, ysvvdrai jxev kv "EKvO'iaf iv TTOTUfxt^ XeyofXEV(i> Ilovr^. Avvarai dt rd dvra Taydry." — Dioscor. V. 147. 8 " Trjg d' 'AfiTrsXiTidog yrjg, rjv r'lvsg (papfiuKiriv KaXov(n,"&c. .... **'Ert ^£ oi) dt (Spadiojg Ti]KO[JLevr} orav XeavOeiay Itti x^^V "^oawg iXaiov.'^ — Dioscor. v. 181. Bitumini simillima est ampelitis; experimentum ejus, si cerse modo accepto olio, liquescat," &c.— Pliny, xxxv. 16. 30 A^TGTEKT COLOUES. TlLTTaaXT09.^ Fissasphaltos? Liquid Bitumen.^ There is a liquid Bitumen from Zante, and from Babylon ; also from Apollonia } all whicli the Greeks call Pissasphalton, because of their consisting of Pitch and Bitumen.^ There is a similar kind, resembling oil, at Agrigentum in Sicily, which they burn in lamps.® ^ Dioscorides. ^ piiny. 3 " Bitumen and Petroleum. Under these names are known cer- tain natural tarry matters, more or less fluid, which have evidently resulted from the decomposition of wood or coal, either by heat, or by spontaneous action under the surface of the earth .... There are other forms of Bitumen which are dark coloured or black, and chiefly composed of solid matter, such as Asphaltum and Maltha. Their chemical history is little known." — Turner. " TLaXurai rig Kal TnTTOKKpaXTog yevMfifvr) tv 'ATroWojvia ry TTpbg 'E7ri^a/xva>," &c. — Dioscor. i. 100. ^ " Est vero liquidum Bitumen, sicut Zacynthium, et quod a Babylone invehitur. Liquidum est et Apolloniaticum : quae omnia Grseci pissasphalton appellant, ex argument© picis et bituminis." — Pliny, XXXV. 15. ^ " Gignitur etiam pingue liquorisque oleacei, in Sicilia Agra- gantino fonte inficiens rivum." — ''Utuntur eoad lucernarum lumina, olei vice," &c. — Pliny, xxxv. 15. TJiree Brown Colours and Umher. (Dayy.) Pliny speaks of an African Ochre called Ciculum — Cicerculus,^ which Davy calls a Brown Ochre, and says it probably contained Manganese. ^ " Ex Africa venit, .... cicerculura appellant." — xxxv. d. AlfCIENT COLOTJKS. 31 Sir Humplirey discovered three antique browns : — The first was an oxide of Manganese, as well as an oxide of Iron. The second a deep red-brown; an Ochre partially cal- cined, (The red-brown often occurs on the faces of the figures painted upon mummy-cases : a brown- red Oxide of Iron mixed with Lime.) The third was a snuff-brown Ochre. The Browns in the Baths of Livia, and in the Nozze Aldobrandini, are all Ochres, mixed with black. (Davy.) " Brown Ochre and Umber, compounds which owe their pecuKar tints to a mixture of Hydrates and Man- ganese, were found on the tiles discovered by M. Deville in the ancient Villa of the Forest of Brotonne." ^ Girardin. Tpvr^a.^ Tpvyivov.^ Fcecatwm. Blue Black. Faex Yini; Burnt Wine-lees. The better the Vine, the more the colour resembles Indian Blue (Indigo^) It was used by Polygnotus and Micon.^ Bwrnt Wood. — The ancients had a black made from burnt wood.* ^ Dioscorides. ^ Pliny. 3 Vitruvius, vii. 10. ** Sunt qui et vial fsecem siccatam excoquant ; affirmantque, si ex bono vino fsex fuerit, Indici speciem id atramentum praebere. Polygnotus et Miconi celeberrimi pictores Athenis, e vinaceis fecere : tryginon appellant." — Pliny, xxxv. 6. ^ " Fit et e tedis ligno combusto, tritisque in raortario carbo- nibus. 32 ANCIENT COLOUES, Indicum. — Also a black, called Indicum, from India.* Beckmann thinks the latter may have been Indian Ink.^ ^ Apportatur et Indicum ex India," &c — Id. ^ History of Inventions. 'Iv?)ik6v neXav. — Arrian. EXe(f>dviLvov,^ Ele'phantinum? Ivoey Black. Calcined Ivory; used by Apelles.^ ^ Apelles, in Pliny. 2 Pliny. ^ " Apelles commentus est ex ebore combusto facere, quod elephan- tinum vocavit." — Pliny, xxxv. 6. MeXav.^ Atramentmn? Bone Black. The Egyptians used a Black from calcined Bones.' Dalechamp says, that the best of the three ancient Blacks was made from the burnt bones of the Persians.'* The Assyrians also employed a Black from burnt bones. ^ 1 Dioscorides. 2 PHny. 3 Dr. Ure, in Wilkinson. " Inventi sunt pictores, qui e sepulchris carbones infectos efFoderent." — Pliny, xxxv. 6. 4 " Priraum quidetn ex fuligine olei nucum usci : deinde ex ebore cretnato : tertio, quod est prestantissimum, ex ossibus Persicorum U5tis." See his note to Pliny — xxxv. 6. (lips. 1788.) 5 Layard's Nineveh. Aa^oXr].^ Fuligo? Lamp Black. The smoke of burnt Rosin or Pitch.^ The soot which the painters use is from the glassworkers, which is the ^ Dioscor. " Pliny. ^ " Atramentum fit enim et fuligine pluribus modis, resina vel pice exustis," et seq. — Pliny, xxxv. 6 ; and Vitr, vii. 10. ANCIENT COLOURS. 33 best.* All the ancient Blacks discovered by Davy were carbonaceous. He found them in the Baths of Titus and Li via ; also in the Aldobrandini marriage. ■* "'A(t(36Xij y oi <^(i)ypa.(poi xpwvrai, \a[xj3dvtTai [xku tK tmv veXovpyaiv ' dia." — lov, in Pollux. o3 34 ANCIElfT COLOrKS. MATEEIALS AVAILABLE FOR VEHICLES AND VAENISHES, WHICH WEEE KNOWN TO THE ANCIENTS. DEYINa OILS, Pitch is drawn out and melted in Oil} Wax mixed and tempered with Oil.'^ Punic wax liquefied with Oil.^ All Eesins are soluble in Oil. ^ " Concordia valent, pix oleo extrahitur quando utrumque pinguis naturae est." — Pliny, xxiv. 1. " " Cerara punicam paulo oleo temperatam." — Vitruvius, vii. 9. 3 " Cera punica cum oleo liquefacta." — Pliny, xxxiii. 7. Kapvivov.^ Caryvnim. Walnut Oil, The oil which is made from walnuts is called Cary- inum.^ 1 " Kai TO Kapvivov Ik Twv (SaaLkLKiLv Kapvfov (TVVTiQkfitvov.'' — Dioscorides, i. 41. ""EXaiov yovv tKQXl-ipai dvvarbv iariv avrov TraXaiovixsvov,'* — Galen, De Simpl. Med. vii. 12. " E nuce vero juglandi," &c. — Pliny, xxiii. 4. — E nucibus juglandibus quod Caryinon vocant." — Id. xv. 7. Mt^kcovov. Fapaveremi. Poppy Oil. Being placed in the sun, it liquefies ; and, when put to a lamp, burns brightly 2 "Kai TrpbgXvxvov t^aTTTOfitvoQ ov ^o^w^ci ^Xoyt." — Dioacor. iv. 65 ; Pliny, xx. 18. AJTCIENT COLOUES. 35 KUivov.^ Cicinum. Castoe Oil. Eicinus or Croto — Palma Christi ; a herb which grows abundantly in Egypt. Linseed^ and Hempseed^ Oils were expressed by the Ancients. — (Diosc, Galen, Pliny, &c.) Euphorlum. — (Diosc. and Pliny). Cucurhita. — {Diosc), They all yield drying oils. — Dr. Turner. ^ Galen. " Kik'ivov eXaiov." — Diosc. i. 38. "Kki ?) fcporwv, oi epoixsvov aTjxov yevr)Tai SidlSpoxov, tK9Xi[3eTai kg dyyuov.'* — Diosc. i. 95. E pice fit, quod pissinum appellant quum coquitur, velleribus supra halitum ejus expansis, atque ita expressis ; probatum maxime ex Brutia ; est enim pinguissima et resinorissima. Color oleo fulvus." — Pliny, XV. 7. For a more scientific evidence of Greek skill in distillation, or rather sublimation, see note to the article on Cinnabar. 36 ANCIENT COLOURS. KeSpeXatov. Pisselceon} Oil of Cedar. Oil is also produced from the Cedar tree. They call it Pisselaeon, (Cedrelseon). It is separated from the Cedar whilst the latter is being heated, woollen flocks being spread above to catch the ex- halations, which are afterwards expressed from the wool.^ ' '* Fit ex eo et oleum, quod pisselseoa vocant." — Plinij, xxiv. 5. 2 " ViveTai St xai tXaiov, i% avTrjg^ x'^P'?"/^*'^*'^ f^^^* '''^Q i^^SpiaQ Si ip'iov VTTtoanjjpoviiki'ov iv rij B.\pri7ei (oq irri rjjg Triaar^g," — Dioscor. i. 105. Nd^9n.^ Naphtha. Naphtha. A white oily bitumen which flows from the Babylonian Asphalte. It is used in lamps also.^ ' " KnXtirat Si Tig Kai vatpQa, oairtp tan Trig BajSvXojvlov a(Ta\Tov TTEpirjOrjfia, Ti^ ^pw/^art XtvKov." — Dioscor. i. 101. ^ *' Prima densatio Babylone in bitumen liquidum cogitur, oleo simile, quo et in lucernis utuntur." — Pliny, xxxi. 7. Also Galen. *' JltTpkXaiov." — Nic. Alexandr. DEYERS. AiOdpyvpo<;J Molylditis} Litharge. The red Protoxide of Lead, or vitreous Oxide ; made from Lead-ore, calcined. It is called Puteolana, from having been manufactured at that place. Davy found it in the Baths of Titus. * " KiBcipyvpog rj jxev r'lg sk Trjg no\tl3S'iTiSog KaXovfievrjg dfifjtov ytvvaTai, %a»v£uojLi£V?je dX9*- TsXdag SKTrvpu)(Teu)g ' 7) St t^ dpyvpov ' 7) St fK fioXijSSov." — Diosc. V. 102. 2 " Molybditis plumbi ipsius fusura, quae fit Puteolis, et inde habet ^lomen." — Pliny, xxxiii. 6. " hiQcipyvpog ^ripaivei." — Galen, De Simp. Med. 9. 3. 17. 37 WiiiixiOiov. Cerussa. White Lead. Carbonate of Lead. " White Lead and Litharge thicken and dry." ^ ^ ^ifxHiOiov yovv Kal XiOdpyvpoQ arixpu Kai ^r)paivsi.^^ — Galen, De Meth. Med. iii. 4. EESINS. " Resina omnis dissolvitur olio." — Pliny, xiv, 20. Tip/jLtvdos.^ Terebinthus?' Turpentine Eesin. The best and clearest Turpentine Hesin comes from the East.2 ^ Theophrastus, *'^v%ft Kal ctv^h." — Diosc. i. 50. ^ " In Oiiente optimam tenuissimamque Terebinthi fundunt. — Pliny, xiv. 20. "Ylpodyu dk irarrCjv tCjv prjrivMV rj TtpiiivQivrj.^' — Diosc. i. 91. Mao-TLXH'^ J^entescina. Mastic Eesin. The next Resin in quality is the Mastic.^ The best is the white Mastic of Chio.^ ^ " M.a(rTixv rj fxiv XevKt] Kat x*'««" — Galen, De Simp. Med. lib. 7. p. 206. ^ " Proxima ex lentisco." — Pliny, lib. xvi. 22 §; also xxiv. 6 ; also Diosc. i. 91. ^ " "SiVVTiOerai sv Xiifj ry vr](T(i> kciWkjtov. — Diosc. i. 51. Ai^avos.^ Thus. Frankincense. Lebanon comes from Arabia ; it should be white, large, brittle, and inflammable, and should resist the toothbite.^ ^ " Ai(3avog yevdrai fiev ev 'Apa(3ia ry Ai^ava(p6pijj KaXovfjieTy," &c. — Diosc. i. 81. 2 "Probatur candore, amplitudine, fragilitate, carbone ut statim ardeat. Item ne dentem accipeat potius quam in micas friet." — Pliny, xii. 14. " Ai^avojTov." — Theophr. Hist. ix. 4. 38 COLOrES. ni(T