vermilion artificial

Home » Products » Pigments Checkers » Pigments Checker » Pigments Checker – Standard – Pigments’ List » vermilion artificial

Vermilion (artificial)

High quality synthetic vermilion.

Manufacturer / product code: Kremer 42000
Chemical description: mercury sulfide, synthetic
Color: red
Color Index: PR 106
More info: Kremer PDF

Artificial vermilion is a bright red pigment based on mercury sulfide (HgS), developed as a synthetic alternative to the rare natural mineral cinnabar. Its manufacture is already documented in antiquity, with early recipes described in Roman and later medieval technical sources, where mercury and sulfur were combined through controlled heating and grinding. Compared to natural cinnabar, artificial vermilion offered greater availability, more uniform color, and lower cost, which contributed to its widespread adoption in painting and manuscript illumination from the Middle Ages onward. The pigment is characterized by a strong, opaque red with high covering power, making it ideal for details, drapery, and symbolic elements. However, vermilion is also known for its chemical instability: under certain environmental conditions, particularly light exposure and the presence of chlorides, it may darken or alter in tone.

Raman Spectroscopy 532 nm – ElviRa Spectrometer for Art

Raman Spectroscopy 532 nm (ElviRa spectrometer) Pigments-Checker Database (67838 downloads )

Raman spectroscopy 632 nm

Raman spectroscopy 785 nm

Pigments (powder, no binder)

Raman Spectroscopy 785 nm Pigments (pure, no binder) (70430 downloads )

Pigments with acrylic binder (Pigments Checker)

Raman Spectroscopy 785 nm Pigments-Checker Database (70879 downloads )

Raman spectroscopy 830 nm

Pigments (powder, no binder)

Raman Spectroscopy 830 nm Pigments-Checker Database (57432 downloads )

Raman spectroscopy 1064 nm

Pigments (powder, no binder)

Raman Spectroscopy 1064 nm Pigments-Checker Database (52939 downloads )

XRF spectroscopy

XRF Spectroscopy Pigments-Checker Database (80918 downloads )

DOWNLOAD previous database from Pigments Checker V.3 DOWNLOAD paper: R. Larsen, N. Coluzzi, A. Cosentino “Free XRF Spectroscopy database of Pigments Checker” Intl Journal of Conservation Science.