Cochineal, Indian lac

Ingredients

cochineal, Indian lac, white lead

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

Cochineal was used primarily from the early to middle 15th century. With the advent of the Turkman style (mid-15th century), Indian lac usage increased (p. 234). These organic dyes were often applied as transparent or semi-transparent layers over other colors to determine details (p. 234). For pink, they were mixed with white lead (p. 233). For purple, cochineal was combined with ultramarine or indigo (p. 234).

Evidence

"Cochineal and Indian lac are the only dyes that have been used purely or only in combination with white lead to create pink or violet. Interestingly, many Persian manuscript painters have either used cochineal or Indian lac for these colour tonalities."

Remarks

Turkman painters in Shiraz favored cochineal, whereas Timurid and Inju Shiraz painters utilized Indian lac for these tonalities (p. 233). Prior to the mid-15th century, Indian lac was not identified in the analyzed samples (p. 234).