Cerulean Blue
Artificial inorganic pigmentComposition and Properties of Cerulean Blue
Cerulean blue is cobalt-(II)-stannate with the formula of CoSnO3 or more generally CoO · n SnO2. The pigment is very stable and it does not change under illumination.
Video: 'Pigment Playtime: Cerulean Blue' by Penholder Art
Pigment
Painted swatch
NamesÂ
Alternative names
ceruleum blue, caeruleum
Color Index
PB 35, CI 77368
Word origin
“Sky-colored, sky-blue,” 1660s, with -an + Latin caeruleus “blue, dark blue, blue-green,” perhaps from a dissimilation of caelulum, diminutive of caelum “heaven, sky,” which is of uncertain origin.
Coelinblau
German
Bleu de céruleum
French
Blu de ceruleo
Italian
Azul cerúleo
Spanish
Preparation
The pigment can be prepared by heating a mixture of cobalt-(II)-chloride and potassium stannate.
History of UseÂ
 Cerulean blue was first synthesized in 1805 and was used mainly for painting skies due to its light blue colour and excellent stability.
Examples of use
Berthe Morisot, A Summer's Day, ca 1879
Â
 Identification
Infrared Spectrum
IR Spectrum in Ref (1)
(1) Carlos Eduardo Silva, Luciana P. Silva, Howell G. M. Edwards and Luiz Fernando C. de Oliveira, Diffuse reflection FTIR spectral database of dyes and pigments, Anal Bioanal Chem (2006) 386:2183–2191 DOI 10.1007/s00216-006-0865-8. Available as pdf.
Raman Spectrum
Spectrum by Ian M. Bell, Robin J.H. Clark and Peter J. Gibbs, Raman Spectroscopic Library
University College of London.
References
(1) Bouchard, M. and Gambardella, A., Raman microscopy study of synthetic cobalt blue spinels used in the field of art. J. Raman Spectrosc., 41: 1477–1485, 2010. doi: 10.1002/jrs.2645
X-Ray Fluorescence Spektrum (XRF)
XRF Spectrum in the Free XRF Spectroscopy Database of Pigments Checker, CHSOS website.
Microphotograph
image © Volker Emrath
Further Reading
References
S. Muntwyler, J. Lipscher, HP. Schneider, Das Farbenbuch, 2nd. Ed., 2023, alataverlag Elsau, pp. 94-95.
