Schmincke Horadam Aquarell Artist Watercolor - Shire Blue, Supergranulation, 15 ml, Tube

Pigment Information

This color contains the following pigments:

PY159-Zirconium Praesodymium Yellow

PB29-Ultramarine [Blue]

PG26-Cobalt Green Deep

Pigment Name

PY159-Zirconium Praesodymium Yellow

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

zirconium, silica, praseodymium oxide

Properties

This greenish yellow pigment is temperature stable and is used for coloring enamels, glazes, and ceramics.

Pigment Name

PB29-Ultramarine [Blue]

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

complex silicate of sodium and aluminum with sulfur

Chemical Formula

Na8-10Al6Si6O24S2-4 or Na6-8Al6Si6O24S2-4

Properties

Ultramarine is the standard warm blue, a brilliant blue pigment that has the most purple and least green in its undertone. It has a moderate to high tinting strength and a beautiful transparency. Synthetic Ultramarine is not as vivid a blue as natural Ultramarine. Ultramarine dries slowly in oil and tends to produce clean, though granular, washes in watercolor. French Ultramarine mixes well with Alizarin colors in oil and watercolor form to create a range of purples and violets. It can dull when mixed with white in acrylic form, but mixes well with other colors. The shade varies based on manufacturer. Considered a great color for glazes, it is not suitable for frescoing.

Permanence

Ultramarine has excellent permanence, although synthetic Ultramarine is not as permanent as natural Ultramarine. It may discolor if exposed to acid because of its sulfuric content.

Toxicity

Ultramarine has no significant hazards.

History

The name for this pigment comes from the Middle Latin ultra, meaning beyond, and mare, meaning sea, because it was imported from Asia to Europe by sea. It is a prominent component of lapis lazuli and was used on Asian temples starting in the 6th century. It was one of the most expensive pigments in 16th century Europe, worth twice its weight in gold, and so was used sparingly and when commissions were larger. Ultramarine is currently imitated by a process invented in France in 1826 by Jean Baptiste Guimet, making blue affordable to artists and extending the range of colors on their palettes.

Pigment Name

PG26-Cobalt Green Deep

Pigment Type

inorganic

Chemical Name

Cobalt chromium oxide

Properties

This pigment offers a deep but dull and opaque tone of Cobalt Green. It has moderate covering power, but low tinting strength. It is primarily for use on its own, or for mixing with other cobalt colors. It is an alternative to cobalt(II) zinc oxide, another form of Cobalt Green.

Permanence

Cobalt pigments are absolutely lightfast.

Toxicity

Cobalt chromium oxide is slightly toxic, and is a possible carcinogen.

History

Cobalt chromium oxide is an alternative Cobalt Green to the better known cobalt zinc oxide. Both pigments were used by landscape artists before phthalocyanine-based pigments became widely available in the 20th century.