R&F Encaustic Paint Block - Mars Red, 40 ml

It is intensely red, yet in a high-key painting, it appears almost brown. Surrounded by low-key colours, it can be strikingly saturated but never electric. Makes salmon pink tints. Similar to the nature ochres: English Red or Light Red

• Pigment Composition: PR101-Red Iron Oxide
• Paint Lines: Encaustic, Pigment Stick
• Opacity: Opaque
• Pigment Stick Drying Rate: Fast
• Classification: Synthetic inorganic
• Chemical Composition: Synthesized iron oxide, calcined
• Safety Information: Conforms to ASTM D-4236

Pigment Name: PR101-Red Iron Oxide

Classification: Earth, synthetic

Chemical Composition: iron oxides (synthetic), iron oxide, silica, alumina, lime, and magnesia or hydrated iron oxide

Properties

Red iron oxide varies in hue and transparency, depending on hydration and slight impurities. Indian Red is a slightly duller, deep brick hue with a bluish undertone. It is very dense and opaque, with excellent tinting strength and covering power. It is dependable when mixed with all other permanent pigments and yields good flesh tints when mixed with Zinc White. It is the synthetic version of PR102, which is a pigment made from earth reds, or natural red iron oxides, and the names applied to PR101 and PR102 often overlap. The synthetic red iron oxides have mostly replaced natural red iron oxides and are brighter, stronger, finer, and more permanent. Indian Red is the highest grade bluish shade. Light Red, English Red, and Venetian Red are yellowish shades. Mars Violet is a dull and subdued bluish or purplish oxide.

Permanence

Red iron oxide is very lightfast and has excellent permanence.

Toxicity

Red iron oxide has no significant hazards.

History

Natural red iron oxide comes from the mineral ore hematite, which the ancient Greeks called bloodstone from the word hema, meaning blood. Hematite is one of the oldest pigments, has been used by every major civilization, and was an important mineral for medieval alchemists. It was not widely used in artists' materials until the 17th century and was not produced in large quantities until the 18th century.