Ochre


Ochre is a family of natural clay earth pigments, made up of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand, ranging in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. The term is also used for the colours produced by this pigment, especially a light brownish-yellow. A variant of ochre containing a large amount of hematite, or dehydrated iron oxide, has a reddish tint known as red ochre. The term "ochre" is colloquially used to cover a range of different substances used for their colours in Aboriginal Australian art and ceremonial decoration, for instance the clay known as "white ochre" or "pipe clay" is derived from kaolin or gypsum.

Terminology

Ochre is a natural clay earth pigment, consisting of a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. The family of earth pigments known as ochre includes yellow ochre, red ochre, purple ochre, sienna, and umber. The major ingredient of all the ochres is iron oxide-hydroxide, known as limonite, which gives them a yellow colour. A range of other minerals may also be included in the mixture:
The clays coloured with iron oxide derived during the extraction of tin and copper may also be known as ochre.
The term is also used for the colours produced by this pigment, especially a light brownish-yellow.
The range of colours include:
  • Yellow ochre, - hydrated iron oxyhydroxide also called gold ochre.
  • Red ochre,, takes its reddish colour from the mineral hematite, which is an iron oxide, reddish brown when hydrated.
  • Purple ochre is a rare variant identical to red ochre chemically but of a different hue caused by different light diffraction properties associated with a greater average particle size.
  • Brown ochre, also FeO,, is a partly hydrated iron oxide. Similarly, lepidocrocite — γ-FeO, a secondary mineral, a product of the oxidation of iron ore minerals, found in brown iron ores
  • Sienna contains both limonite and a small amount of manganese oxide, which makes it darker than ochre.
  • Umber pigments contain a larger proportion of manganese, which makes them a dark brown.

    Historical use in art and culture

Prehistory



Over recent decades, red ochre has played a pivotal role in discussions about the cognitive and cultural evolution of early modern humans during the African Middle Stone Age. In Africa, evidence for the processing and use of red ochre pigments has been dated by archaeologists to around 300,000 years ago, the climax of the practice coinciding broadly with the emergence of Homo sapiens. Evidence of ochre's use in Australia is more recent, dated to 50,000 years ago, while new research has uncovered evidence in Asia that is dated to 40,000 years ago.
Archeological evidence highlights that prehistoric populations picked different ochre specifically based on certain qualities such as their color, texture, and even hardness. In parts of Southern Africa deep red-iron ochres were transported over very long distances even though there was evidence of local deposits, implying that each different pigment had a unique cultural or ritual importance to the people. The specific and purposeful movement of the ochre suggest there were many early long distant exchange networks among the Middle Stone Age groups.
File:Lascaux2.jpg|Image of a horse coloured with yellow ochre from Lascaux cave, France|thumb
File:Pech Merle main.jpg|Image of a human hand created with red ochre in Pech Merle cave, France |thumb
A re-examination of artefacts uncovered in 1908 at Le Moustier rock shelters in France has identified Mousterian stone tools that were attached to grips made of ochre and bitumen. The grips were formulated with 55% ground goethite ochre and 45% cooked liquid bitumen to create a mouldable putty that hardened into handles. Earlier excavations at Le Moustier prevent conclusive identification of the archaeological culture and age, but the European Mousterian style of these tools suggests they are associated with Neanderthals during the late Middle Paleolithic, between 60,000 and 35,000 years before present. It is the earliest evidence of compound adhesive use in Europe.
Pieces of ochre engraved with abstract designs have been found at the site of the Blombos Cave in South Africa, dated to around 75,000 years ago. "Mungo Man" in Australia was buried sprinkled with red ochre around 40,000 years ago. In Wales, the Paleolithic burial called the Red Lady of Paviland from its coating of red ochre has been dated to around 33,000 years before present. Paintings of animals made with red and yellow ochre pigments have been found in Paleolithic sites at Pech Merle in France, and the cave of Altamira in Spain. The cave of Lascaux has an image of a horse coloured with yellow ochre estimated to be 17,300 years old. Neolithic burials may have used red ochre pigments symbolically, either to represent a return to the earth or possibly as a form of ritual rebirth, in which the colour may symbolize blood and a hypothesized Great Goddess.
The Ancient Picts were said to paint themselves "Iron Red" according to the Gothic historian Jordanes. Frequent references in Irish myth to "red men" make it likely that such a practice was common to the Celts of the British Isles, bog iron being particularly abundant in the midlands of Ireland.
Ochre has uses other than as paint: "tribal peoples alive today... use either as a way to treat animal skins or else as an insect repellent, to staunch bleeding, or as protection from the sun. Ochre may have been the first medicament."

Ancient Egypt

In Ancient Egypt, yellow was associated with gold, which was considered to be eternal and indestructible. The skin and bones of the gods were believed to be made of gold. The Egyptians used yellow ochre extensively in tomb painting, though occasionally they used orpiment, which made a brilliant colour, but was highly toxic, since it was made with arsenic. In tomb paintings, men were always shown with brown faces, women with yellow ochre or gold faces.
Red ochre in Ancient Egypt was used as a rouge, or lip gloss for women. Ochre-coloured lines were also discovered on the Unfinished obelisk at the northern region of the Aswan Stone Quarry, marking work sites. Ochre clays were also used medicinally in Ancient Egypt: such use is described in the Ebers Papyrus from Egypt, dating to about 1550 BC.

Ancient Phoenicia

Pigments, particularly red ochre, were essential to grave rituals in ancient Phoenician society. They were more than just cosmetics; they also had important symbolic and ritualistic connotations. With its vivid color that was evocative of blood and energy, red ochre represented life, death, and rebirth. It also represented the desire for resurrection and the belief in an afterlife. In order to honor the deceased and get them ready for their passage to the afterlife, these pigments, particularly red ochre, were most likely applied to their body or other grave goods as part of the burial rites. “Phoenicians' love of red is highlighted by the great number of powders of this color found in the containers. The powders were probably used to give a hue to cheeks or to lips. Besides these uses as make-up powders, we can also assume a ritual use of ointments and powders containing cinnabar or ochre, applied to the face and the forehead during preparation rituals of the bodies. The discovery of red paint traces on bones and skulls suggests that these practices were common among the Phoenicians as for other populations.” Greater-quality pigments and more intricate applications would typically indicate people of greater rank or particular significance within the community. Moreover, the presence and quality of pigments in a burial site may indicate the identity or social standing of the deceased. In addition to acting as offerings to the gods and protective symbols, pigments were employed to adorn grave goods including pottery, amulets, and other objects, so elevating the spiritual purity of the interment. The visual impact of red ochre could also have been intended to preserve the appearance of the body or make it presentable for mourning ceremonies, ensuring that the deceased was honored appropriately. This vivid color would enhance the overall visual and emotional impact of funerary displays. In essence, the use of red ochre and other pigments in Phoenician funerary contexts highlights their cultural and symbolic importance, reflecting deep-seated beliefs about death, the afterlife, and social hierarchy, thus providing a richer understanding of Phoenician customs and values.

Ancient Greece and Rome

Ochre was the most commonly used pigment for painting walls in the ancient Mediterranean world. In Ancient Greece, red ochre was called μίλτος, míltos. In ancient Athens when Assembly was called, a contingent of public slaves would sweep the open space of the Agora with ropes dipped in miltos: those citizens that loitered there instead of moving to the Assembly area would risk having their clothes stained with the paint. This prevented them from wearing these clothes in public again, as failure to attend the Assembly incurred a fine.
In England, red ochre was also known as "raddle", "reddle", or "ruddle" and was used to mark sheep and can also be used as a waxy waterproof coating on structures. The reddle was sold as a ready-made mixture to farmers and herders by travelling workers called reddlemen.
In Classical antiquity, the finest red ochre came from a Greek colony on the Black Sea where the modern city of Sinop in Turkey is located. It was carefully regulated, expensive and marked by a special seal, and this colour was called sealed Sinope. Later the Latin and Italian name sinopia was given to wide range of dark red ochre pigments. Roman triumphators painted their faces red, perhaps to imitate the red-painted flesh of statues of the Gods. The Romans used yellow ochre in their paintings to represent gold and skin tones, and as a background colour. It is found frequently in the murals of Pompeii.