Prussian Blue Hue

Pigment History: Serendipity played a part in the creation of Prussian Blue. A pigment-maker named Diesbach, working in Berlin around 1704, attempted using a mixture of ground bones and blood to create a red color. He was surprised when his experiment produced a remarkable blue instead. Known as the “first of the modern pigments,” Prussian Blue is significant as the first artificial pigment with a known history and an established date of first preparation. Artists who struggle with replacing true Prussian Blue pigment with the acidy clean Phthalos will appreciate this re-creation. This new blend of Phthalo Blue Red Shade, Dioxazine Purple and Bone Black - with a deep, dark reddish blue cast - achieves as close a hue as can be created today without using the stubborn Prussian Blue pigment in an acrylic emulsion.
Pigment Classification: Mixture
Chemical Description: Copper Phthalocyanine / Carbazole Dioxazine / Carbonized Bones
Opacity/Transparency: 2
Lightfastness Rating: II
Permanency: Very Good
Colour Index Name: PB15:1 / PV23 / PBk9
Colour Index Number: 74160 / 51319 / 77266
Munsell Notation Listing:
Hue: 8.0 B
Value: 2.45
Chroma: 1.5
Spectrophotometer Readings: N/A
Viscosity Range: 16000-20000 CPS
PH Range: 8.7-9.0
Gloss Average: 73.78
CIE L*a*b* Values: L*24.61 a*2.16 b*-3.39
Tint Strength: 70.3

The Lightfastness Ratings included in this chart are provided by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) in the standard for “Artists’ Acrylic Emulsion Paints”. (ASTM D 5098, Annual Book of Standards, Volume 6.02). Colors with a Lightfastness Rating of I are considered Excellent (“Exc.”) and those with a Lightfastness Rating of II are Very Good (“V.G.”). Where Lightfastness Ratings have not been obtained according to ASTM test protocol, “NA” is indicated in the table. In these cases, data from pigment manufacturers and our own test facilities have been used and an appropriate description assigned under Permanency.

**The identified colors are sensitive to a combination of moisture and UV radiation and are not recommended for outdoor use.

For Opacity/Transparency, we have determined that an eight-point scale is most appropriate for describing the properties of our colors. We have assigned each color in the chart a number from 1 (most opaque) to 8 (most transparent) to indicate the relative opacity/transparency of that color.

The C.I. (Colour Index) Name is an internationally recognized code assigned to a particular “colorant.” The C.I. Name consists of the category (type of dye or pigment), general hue and serial number assigned, based on its chemical constitution. For example, PB 60, Anthraquinone Blue, indicates a specific Pigment Blue. The C.I. Number is a five-digit reference number assigned in the Colour Index based on the chemical structure of a colorant, regardless of usage class.

Notes:
1) The Golden C.P. designation indicates concentrated cadmium pigments (CC).

2) Information about Iridescent and Interference products apply for both Fine and Coarse grades.