Cerulean blue
Description
A synthetic sky blue pigment originally composed of cobalt stannate. Cerulean blue was perfect by a process developed by Andreas Hpfner in Germany in 1805 that roasted cobalt and tin oxides. However, the color was sold as an artists pigment in 1860 by Rowney and Company under the name of coeruleum (Gettens and Stout 1966). Cerulean blue is an inert, lightfast pigment that acts as a drier for oil paints. Some commercial color formulations sold as the cerulean blue hue include:
- oxides of cobalt and aluminum
- cobalt chromate
- oxides of cobalt, aluminum, and chromium
- titanium dioxide and phthalocyanine
- zinc oxide and phthalocyanine
Synonyms and Related Terms
cobalt stannate; Pigment Blue 35; CI 77346; CI 77368; azul cerleo (Esp.); Coelinblau (Deut.); bleu ciel (Fr.); bleu ceruleum (Fr.); blu ceruleo (It.); ceruleum blauw (Ned.); azul cerleo (Port.); cobaltous stannate; cobalt tin oxide; coelin; ceruleum blue; caeruleum; coeruleum; cobalt magneium stannate; magnesium cerulean blue
Other Properties
Very fine, rounded, isotropic, greenish-blue particles. High refractive index.
No birefringence. No pleochroism. Appears deep red through Chelsea filter.
Inert to acids and bases.
| Composition | CoO-nSnO2 |
|---|---|
| Refractive Index | 1.78 - 1.84 |
Hazards and Safety
Skin contact may cause allergies. Chronic inhalation may cause asthma and possible fibrosis. Ingestion may cause acute vomiting and diarrhea.
Additional Information
Pigments Through the Ages: Cerulean blue
Comparisons
Characteristics of Common Blue Pigments
Additional Images
Cerulean blue
Authority
- Nicholas Eastaugh, Valentine Walsh, Tracey Chaplin, Ruth Siddall, Nicholas Eastaugh, Valentine Walsh, Tracey Chaplin, Ruth Siddall, Pigment Compendium, Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, 2004
- R. J. Gettens, G.L. Stout, R. J. Gettens, G.L. Stout, Painting Materials, A Short Encyclopaedia, Dover Publications, New York, 1966 Comment: first sold in 1860
- G.S.Brady, G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 810
- The Dictionary of Art, Grove's Dictionaries Inc., New York, 1996 Comment: "Pigment"
- M. Doerner, M. Doerner, The Materials of the Artist, Harcourt, Brace & Co., 1934
- Reed Kay, Reed Kay, The Painter's Guide To Studio Methods and Materials, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1983
- Ralph Mayer, Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing) Comment: introduced as artist pigment in 1870
- Michael McCann, Michael McCann, Artist Beware, Watson-Guptill Publications, New York City, 1979
- Thomas B. Brill, Thomas B. Brill, Light Its Interaction with Art and Antiquities, Plenum Press, New York City, 1980
- David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, Ashok Roy, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, Ashok Roy, Art in the Making:Impressionism, National Gallery, London, 1990 Comment: introduced as water color pigment by Rowney in 1860
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, at http://www.wikipedia.com Comment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerulean (Accessed Sept 2 2005)
- Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000
- Website address 1, Website address 1 Comment: Pigments Through the Ages: http://webexhibits.org/pigments/indiv/overview/ceruleanblue.html gives "reintroduction in 1860 by George Rowney in England"