![]() “It is made from very fine shavings of lead, placed over a vessel filled with the strongest vinegar by which means the shavings become dissolved. Pliny provides the following detailed account of its preparation: Ceruse, lead white, is prepared in much the same manner as described by Pliny as it was throughout history until the beginning of the twentieth century. “At the present day,” he continues, “all ceruse is prepared from lead and vinegar.” The native ceruse suggests Ajasson, one of Pliny’s commentators, was native lead carbonate or cerussite. Pliny mentions the use of a native ceruse (Middle English, from Middle French céruse, from Latin cerussa) found on the lands of Theodotus at Smyrna. The method of preparing lead white pigment, common in Europe until the twelfth century, was probably the same as that of ancient Grecian and Roman painters. History of Lead White Manufacture until the Twelfth Century ![]() The acetic acid, in the form of vinegar, converts the lead, forming basic or tribasic lead acetate, which is afterward decomposed by the carbon dioxide to form basic lead carbonate. In this process, the air supplies the oxygen, while the fermenting matter produces carbon dioxide and moisture. It has been made since antiquity using variations of the process known as the ‘stack’ or ‘Dutch’ process, whereby lead is exposed to acetic acid vapors in the presence of moisture and carbon dioxide the latter is generally provided by fermenting matter (horse manure, waste grape skins, tanbark), which also provides a constant source of heat. ![]() Lead white is lead carbonate hydroxide (basic lead carbonate) with the chemical formula 2PbCO 3, Pb(OH) 2. One of the shops discovered in the excavations at Pompeii had jars of pigments displayed in long rows, ready for sale to the artist and painter. The ancient Romans attained considerable skill in the preparation of pigments, and the manufacture and sale of colors was a well-established branch of industry and commerce in the Roman empire. It was first identified in literature as a pigment by Pliny, who mentions it, among other colors, as used by the ancients to paint ships.Īlthough Davy failed to find lead white in his examination of the pigments discovered in the excavations at Pompeii, he believed that it was commonly used and that the ancient Romans prepared lead pigments of different hues between Pliny’s usta or minium and partially calcined lead white or massicot. It was known to the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans and was commonly used to prepare ointments, plasters, and cosmetics. Lead white is the most important white pigment used in painting throughout history. The lead white found in artists’ oil paints is the modern form of the pigment, whereas the lead white in all paintings made before the 20th century contains the ‘traditional’ (stack process or old Dutch method) form of lead white.
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