17th century colour palettes: a compendium on pigments and studio practice given in ten 17th century treatises, English, Flemish, Spanish, Italian, French

Abstract

Ten 17th century writers described the pigments in use in their countries. England, Sweden, Flanders, France, Spain, and Italy. The theme of their treatises was studio practice and the pigments were discussed as they were set on the palette. Surprisingly, the method was the same - from light to dark, white to black. The 17th century palette was an international palette comprising just over 100 pigments.