yellow ochre (Akkadian kalû)
Mesopotamia
7th Century
Source: Weirauch, K., and Cammarosano, M. (2021). WoW! Writing on Wax in Ancient Mesopotamia and Today: Questions and Results from an Interdisciplinary Project. In: Writing on Wax in Ancient Mesopotamia and Today. Brill.
Recipe Details
Ingredients
beeswax, yellow ochre (Akkadian kalû), sesame oil
Preparation Steps
Neo-Babylonian cuneiform accounts suggest a proportion of 6.6% and 10% of ochre in the wax paste (p. 21). High-quality ochre was readily available across ancient Mesopotamia (p. 20). The pigment was added to molten beeswax to produce a surface color resembling clay tablets (p. 20).
Original Recipe Text
Neo-Babylonian cuneiform accounts suggest a proportion of 6.6% and 10% of ochre in the wax paste (p. 21). High-quality ochre was readily available across ancient Mesopotamia (p. 20). The pigment was added to molten beeswax to produce a surface color resembling clay tablets (p. 20).
Evidence
"These texts not only mention wooden boards, but also regularly refer to beeswax and yellow ochre (Akkadian kalû) as the necessary raw materials, thus providing indirect evidence for the composition of the wax paste."
Remarks
Ochre was the standard additive used in ordinary Mesopotamian boards, unlike the luxury ivory boards that used orpiment (p. 20). Adding ochre (up to 40–50%) makes the paste softer than pure beeswax and reduces stickiness (p. 21). However, excessive quantities (over 50%) make the paste too granular and hard at low temperatures (p. 21).
Scientific Analysis
Analytical Techniques
indirect evidence from expenditure accounts
Certainty Level
Probable
Instrumentally Verified
Not Verified
Metadata
Material Type
pigment
Binderbeeswax
ColorYellow
RegionMesopotamia
Approx. Year650
Source Information
AuthorWeirauch, K., and Cammarosano, M.
CollectionNeo-Babylonian expenditure accounts
Language
N/A
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