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Colorants

A list of colorants detected so far in this research is provided below along with some of the mixture combinations. Click on each term will to see examples of the printed colors, spectra, and a list of analyzed prints.

This database contains the results of Japanese woodblock prints, or ukiyo-e prints from the Edo period (1603–1868) surveyed using non-invasive techniques that do not require sampling from the prints. These techniques included photography, optical microscopy, X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), Excitation Emission Matrix (EEM), Fiber Optic Reflectance (FORS) spectroscopies as well as Reflected Image Spectroscopy.

Please click here for more information on the data.

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Blue Dayflower Indigo Prussian blue Red Safflower Madder Sappanwood Red lead Vermilion Others

Yellow Turmeric Orpiment Flavonoids Gamboge Iron oxide yellow Brown Iron oxide red Purple Dayflower + Safflower Others

Green Dayflower + Turmeric Indigo + Orpiment Prussian blue + Orpiment Others Orange Others Black Carbon black

White Calcium carbonate Lead white Mica Mica Metallic Brass Tin

By Artist

Prints analyzed listed by artist.

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C Chōbunsai Eishi H Hanekawa Chinchō I Ippitsusai Bunchō Ishikawa Toyonobu Isoda Koryusai K Katsukawa Shunkō Katsukawa Shunshō

Katsushika Taito II Keisai Eisen Kikukawa Eizan Kitagawa Utamaro I Kitao Shigemasa Komatsuken Kubo Shunman O Okumura Masanobu Okumura Toshinobu R Ryūryūkyo Shinsai

S Suzuki Harunobu T Torii Kiyohiro Torii Kiyomasu I Torii Kiyomasu II Torii Kiyomitsu I Torii Kiyonaga Torii Kiyonobu I Torii Kiyotada I Tōshūsai Sharaku Totoya Hokkei

U Utagawa Hiroshige I Utagawa Hiroshige II Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) Utagawa Kuniyoshi Utagawa Toyoharu Utagawa Toyokuni I Y Yanagawa Shigenobu I

Bibliography

A list of publications and resources on colorants found in Japanese woodblock prints.

About the Collection

The MFA has over 50,000 Japanese prints and approximately 3,000 titles of illustrated books covering the Edo period (1603–1868) to the present. The Japanese woodblock print collection spans the Edo period from its birth to color printing to its height as a commercial product and to its end in the Meiji period (1868–1912). This collection represents not only the breadth of artists working at the time but also multiple impressions and editions, making it a comprehensive resource for scholarship, research, and teaching. Collections from prominent Bostonians such as William Sturgis Bigelow, Denman Ross, and the Spaulding brothers at the turn of the century form the basis of the collection. Furthermore, the William S. and John T. Spaulding Collection of Japanese woodblock prints is a study collection comprised of over 6,000 prints that generally display remarkable preservation of the colorants, making it a valuable benchmark for the study of color and palette.

Acknowledgement

The colorant research comes out of a long collaboration between the Asian Conservation Studio and Scientific Research Laboratory that was led by Joan Wright and Michele Derrick. We would like to thank the many volunteers who contributed to this research. We are also grateful to Richard and JoAnn Pinkowitz for donating to this database project which allowed us to bring the Ukiyo-e Print Colorant Database online.