Tin white

Description

An opaque, bluish-white pigment composed of stannic oxide. Tin white is used in ceramics and enamels. It was used in some watercolor paintings and manuscript illuminations until the early 17th century, but was discontinued because it can blacken in sunlight and when mixed with lead white.

Synonyms and Related Terms

tono (Esp.); blanc d'étain (Fr.); branco de estanho (Port.)

Authority

• 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

• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997

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