Browns and reds that are yellows

Color names 

(3rd part)

(Warning: highly confusing)

(If you missed the previous articles on this topic, click here and here)

Doe, Altamira cave, 15000-12000 B.C.

When it comes to browns, everything gets harder, because they are not completely brown.

Our cavemen ancestors, the first painters ever, apart from coal and chalk had many other minerals to obtain colors from, using them in pieces or milled. 

Tapiès, Brown and Ochre, 1959

Ochre (PBr24) (1) is one of them, the oldest color of our planet. It’s a pigment found in every continent. Best one is brought from Turkey and France; Australia is full of ochre and it plays a paramount role in its aborigines’ lives. “Ochre” comes from Greek and means “pale yellow”, which is why tubes of it are labeled as “yellow ochre”.

We have also Raw Sienna and Burnt Sienna (PR101). The raw one is similar to ochre, and burnt one is the raw one heated up: it turns redder for the iron contained in it. Its name it’s due to it being extracted in Sienna, but it’s also found in other places around the world.

Same happens with Raw Umber and Burnt Umber. It was given its name because it’s used for shadows, although it probably also refers to the Italian Region Umbria (“umbra” in Italian= shadow). All shadows were done with this color until the Impressionist revolution.

Corot, Fence in the shade of trees, XIX c.

Van Dyck, Family's Portrait,
1621

And “Terre verte”? Yes, it’s green, but it’s also “terre”, because it’s a natural mineral, the malachite. The Romans used it to paint different skin tones, in addition to counter evil spirits. Sepia is another brown, that is easier: it comes from squid’s ink. And Van Dyck Brown receives its name in honor of this Dutch painter, and in extension, of all Baroque Dutch painters that used it: it comes from a type of coal with brown tints.

There are other yellows with odd names. If you have ever used Indian yellow, then you sure have seen it’s really transparent and intense: although you might not believe it, it used to be pee of Indian cows fed only with mango leaves and water. When the cow peed, it all would be mixed with mud and sold like that. Its production stopped in 1921 for mercy towards the poor animals.

Marc, The yellow cow, 1911

It was said that Naples yellow was original from Vesuvius, which would explain the name. Naples yellow red or green consist in shades it acquires when it’s under different temperatures.

Lucretius' House, Pompeii, I A.C.

Some reds are minerals: for example, “Terra Pozzuoli” is clay with iron found in volcanic areas. Pompeii Red alludes to the red found in Pompeii’s murals, even though the original color was ochre! That’s right: it turned into red because of the Vesuvius’ eruption!

Other reds come from insects and plants. “Carmine” (PR176) alludes to kermes, an insect that gives out a very penetrating substance when smashed. Actually, it only happens with females that carry eggs. When America was discovered, Mexican cochineal got popular, and Spain had the monopoly for which it was called for a long time “red of Spain”. Nowadays, our tubes carry synthetic carmine; the natural one is still used as edible colorant (E20) or as make-up. And Alizarin crimson, which also has a quite weird name, is carmine obtained from madder, an herb found in whole Europe and Orient. It’s also known as “Madder red”. Alizarin is just a chemical component that makes it more stable.

Kupka, Carmín 2, 1908

And Vermilion (PO73)? Its name derivates from vermis (worm, in Latin) alluding to kermes carmine, which is actually an insect. It’s sometimes called Chinese red because the most quality one was from China. It comes from a mineral called cinnabarite, which is a composition of mercury and sulfur. By the way, it’s really poisonous. But, wasn’t cinnabar green?

I’ll tell you some other day. And if you want to know the origin of more color names, go ahead and ask me for it!

Sources: Doerner, M. Malmaterial und seine Verwendung im Bilde. Stuttgart, Enke V. 1989;

Finlay, V. Colores. Barcelona, Océano, 2004;

Heller, E. Wie Farben auf Gefühl und Verstand wirken. München, Droemer V., 2000;

personal notes

[1] These are codes corresponding to these pigments, see previous post here. I don't mention the colors's codes that are a mixing. If you click in the colors's names, you can see them in vasaricolors.com.

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