Iris green

Description

An obsolete organic green colorant extracted from the crushed flowers of iris or lilies. The clear green color was precipitated on alumina trihydrate and used in manuscript painting. Iris green was replaced in the 17th century by sap green which was made from unripe buckthorn berries. The color of the two materials were similar and the name, iris green, was sometimes used for the sap green extract.

Synonyms and Related Terms

sap green; lily green; lilly green

Authority

• R. J. Gettens, G.L. Stout, Painting Materials, A Short Encyclopaedia, Dover Publications, New York, 1966

• Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing)

• R.D. Harley, Artists' Pigments c. 1600-1835, Butterworth Scientific, London, 1982

• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000