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Article ID: CBB448859850

Tracking blue. Some remarks on blue colour materials in the polychromy of ancient Greek sculpture (2023)

Vinzenz Brinkmann (Author)
Ulrike Koch-Brinkmann (Author)

Technai, An International Journal for Ancient Science and Technology
Volume: 14
Pages: 31-49
Publication date: 2023
Language: English

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Color Science and art Glass and glassmaking Alchemy Technology Dyes Bronze age Ancient

The significance and value of colour has long been recognized in the archaeological study of Bronze Age cultures, where it plays a central role. The analysis of material and written sources reveals the importance of blue, which has been chemically produced in the form of faience, glass, and pigment since as early as the third millennium bc. In Egypt, in particular, the quality of shininess represents an important aspect of the terms for blue both as colour and as material. Also, the continuity of the manufacturing techniques as well as the religious and political significance of the colour blue can be traced back to the time of “classical” Greek antiquity. Especially in the sixth century bc, a related understanding of colour can be observed in the polychromy of archaic sculpture. The written sources on colour materials and production techniques by authors such as Pseudo-Democritus, Vitruvius, and Pliny also testify to this continuity. However, in the current archaeological research on Greek and Roman antiquity, scholars are only beginning to take these matters into account. The central importance of colourfulness merits far greater consideration in the scientific study of all art genres, especially sculpture and architecture.

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