Pigments from vine tendrils?
Pigments for painting which were produced prior to 1800 were based on plant, animal and mineral sources. The scope of colours produced from these sources, while limited compared to the colours available in the modern palette, were not as restrictive as many believe.
Although they were sourced from natural ingredients, pigments produced during the medieval period were not particularly easy to make. A number of pigments could take weeks to refine into a useable product. An example of this was ultramarine blue, which is produced from good quality Lapis Lazuli and requires a week or two to in order to refine and create a useable pigment (Porter, 1995, p?).
There are a number of sources for information on the paints used by illuminators, tempera panel, and oil panel painters. The earliest known source for this information is the ‘Mappae Clavicular’, a compilation of manuscripts dating around the 7th century which contained approximately 300 recipes for a number of crafts including painting, metalwork, dyeing and mosaic, as well as several recipes relevant to painting. This collection is quoted by both Theophilus and Cennini as the basis of their work in this field.
One of the easier pigments to produce was the colour black. Commonly referred to as Lamp black as the predominant source was lamp soot, black pigment could also be made from ground ivory, charcoaled bone, or charcoal made from grape vine. According to Theophilus, ground grapevine shoots were preferred as the basis of the charcoal (p 15), which sparked our interest in the process.
In order to use a pigment (by its nature a powder), binding agents were required – the binding agents depended upon the medium being used. Watercolour paints used Gum Arabic or tragacanth to bind the pigment, as they are water soluble and less opaque (opacity usually comes from the density of the pigment itself, although often enhanced by the addition of chalk). Egg Tempera (which was used for iconic panel painting) uses egg yolk as the binder, which gives the work a glossy sheen and a more three dimensional appearance. However, once tempera dries it has a tendency to crack and is rarely used on paper or fabric.
Although they were sourced from natural ingredients, pigments produced during the medieval period were not particularly easy to make. A number of pigments could take weeks to refine into a useable product. An example of this was ultramarine blue, which is produced from good quality Lapis Lazuli and requires a week or two to in order to refine and create a useable pigment (Porter, 1995, p?).
There are a number of sources for information on the paints used by illuminators, tempera panel, and oil panel painters. The earliest known source for this information is the ‘Mappae Clavicular’, a compilation of manuscripts dating around the 7th century which contained approximately 300 recipes for a number of crafts including painting, metalwork, dyeing and mosaic, as well as several recipes relevant to painting. This collection is quoted by both Theophilus and Cennini as the basis of their work in this field.
One of the easier pigments to produce was the colour black. Commonly referred to as Lamp black as the predominant source was lamp soot, black pigment could also be made from ground ivory, charcoaled bone, or charcoal made from grape vine. According to Theophilus, ground grapevine shoots were preferred as the basis of the charcoal (p 15), which sparked our interest in the process.
In order to use a pigment (by its nature a powder), binding agents were required – the binding agents depended upon the medium being used. Watercolour paints used Gum Arabic or tragacanth to bind the pigment, as they are water soluble and less opaque (opacity usually comes from the density of the pigment itself, although often enhanced by the addition of chalk). Egg Tempera (which was used for iconic panel painting) uses egg yolk as the binder, which gives the work a glossy sheen and a more three dimensional appearance. However, once tempera dries it has a tendency to crack and is rarely used on paper or fabric.
Making our own 'best black'
With both Theophilus and Cennini referring to black pigment being derived from grapevine (and the availability of grapevine), the team chose to
make a powdered black pigment pigment. Neither Theophilus nor Cennini provide recipes for the pigment, nor could it be found in other sources. Therefore, we chose the following process.
Using the same premise for making charcoal in large ovens, but on a much smaller scale, we placed small vine tendrils in an enclosed heat proof
container and burned until the fire went out (which only took around fifteen minutes) thus creating the charcoal. Limiting the intake of oxygen limits the temperature and therefore produces the charcoal rather than vine ash.
Once the charcoal was ready, we ground the charcoal in a mortar and pestle and ground the charcoal until a fine powder is produced. This was not a quick process, as grinding any item into a fine powder takes time and attention. The powder produced within this process took approximately 20 hours to produce.
In the 14th century, the time taken to produce the lamp black pigment grapevine would depend on the solidity of the original product and from experience. From our work, we believe that the grapevine tendrils form a softer charcoal than the charcoal produced from the vine itself, hence the preference in the various texts for the former. Mixing the pigment with a little Gum Arabic allows the grittiness to disappear during the grinding process. There is a very specific grinding technique which we used which involved rotating the wrist in a circular motion whilst moving the charcoal/ powder around the bottom. It’s boring and hard work and therefore really suitable for apprentices.
We have not been able to find references to the storage of pure pigments for Illuminators. Although we believe that they were transported, the only references found which identifies storage containers refer to twists of parchment (Porter, 1995). For illumination purposes, once the pigment was mixed in a half-shell with the binding agent, this mixture was covered with a cloth when not in use and reconstituted with water for use (which is reflected in modern practice).
make a powdered black pigment pigment. Neither Theophilus nor Cennini provide recipes for the pigment, nor could it be found in other sources. Therefore, we chose the following process.
Using the same premise for making charcoal in large ovens, but on a much smaller scale, we placed small vine tendrils in an enclosed heat proof
container and burned until the fire went out (which only took around fifteen minutes) thus creating the charcoal. Limiting the intake of oxygen limits the temperature and therefore produces the charcoal rather than vine ash.
Once the charcoal was ready, we ground the charcoal in a mortar and pestle and ground the charcoal until a fine powder is produced. This was not a quick process, as grinding any item into a fine powder takes time and attention. The powder produced within this process took approximately 20 hours to produce.
In the 14th century, the time taken to produce the lamp black pigment grapevine would depend on the solidity of the original product and from experience. From our work, we believe that the grapevine tendrils form a softer charcoal than the charcoal produced from the vine itself, hence the preference in the various texts for the former. Mixing the pigment with a little Gum Arabic allows the grittiness to disappear during the grinding process. There is a very specific grinding technique which we used which involved rotating the wrist in a circular motion whilst moving the charcoal/ powder around the bottom. It’s boring and hard work and therefore really suitable for apprentices.
We have not been able to find references to the storage of pure pigments for Illuminators. Although we believe that they were transported, the only references found which identifies storage containers refer to twists of parchment (Porter, 1995). For illumination purposes, once the pigment was mixed in a half-shell with the binding agent, this mixture was covered with a cloth when not in use and reconstituted with water for use (which is reflected in modern practice).