Timeline for Brown Pigments

The main colour giving component of natural brown ochre is limonite which is not a single mineral but a mixture of several minerals.

Asphalt is an exceedingly complex mixture of organic (bitumen) and a multitude of inorganic components such as silicates and carbonates.

Umber is a general designation for a sedimentary mineral substance containing between 5 to 20% manganese oxides and hydroxides.

Manganese brown is a mixed oxide of manganese and was only seldom employed in oil painting. The name was sometimes used for umber.

Caput mortuum is a synthetic iron oxide pigment known under various names such as Falun red, colcothar, and Indian red.

Bister or bistre is wood soot containing much tar and the color of the pigment varies between warm black and brown-black.

Vandyke brown is an organic natural pigment consisting of materials found in brown coal, peat, or generally in soil.

Burnt Sienna: The main colour giving component of this pigment is iron oxide. The pigment contains around 50% iron oxide.