A review of yellow pigments for coatings and inks

It is necessary to go back 30,000 years to the time that the early cavemen were creating works of art with pigments from natural deposits to have our first glimpse of these pigments in use. When we think of modern art we realise just how much the use of these pigments has degenerated since then. As with many other pigments used in that era, their high level of stability has enabled us to see displayed today everyday life of that period. There have been spasmodic developments since then and written comments in Roman times illustrate that a degree of understanding of their properties was evolving. In the 18th century Schee's chrome yellow was successfully synthesised and particularly over the last hundred years an increasing understanding of the chemical and physical relationships governing the pigment's use have been more understood.