Manganese is a free element that is not made up of any other compound found in nature. It is number 25 on the periodic table. It is often found within other minerals like iron and is used in making metal alloys for stainless steel. Manganese is a silvery-gray metal that was used in prehistoric cave paintings in the Lascaux region of France around 30,000 years ago. The name Manganese somewhat came from the Greek province of Magnesia. Two names are closely associated with the manganese compound; male magnes is used for iron ore known as the lodestone or magnetite which is in the making of the magnet and female magnes is used for decolorizing glass. The male and female magnes compounds were determined by the attraction to iron.
Manganese Violet is a colour that was popular during the 19th century when making mauve synthetically became easy. This is a synthetic pigment composed of double salt of phosphoric acid with manganese and ammonium (ammonia). Manganese oxide cones from the Earth and contains a trace amount of heavy metals.
It was discovered around 1868 in Germany called Nuremberg violet. By 1890, the paint was available by Winsor and Newton as Permanent Violet when was first synthesized by E. Leykauf in Germany in 1868. The pigment has a deep rich opaque hue that is affordable to most painters and artists. It’s such a strong colour to use that it has poor hiding power. It’s lightfast and can be used in many different types of paints. The colour quickly replaced cobalt blue for the more opaque red-violet colour. Inhaling or ingesting the pigment can cause nervous system disorders.
Manganese Violet was used for a while in cosmetics and plastic materials. The colour compound is mostly used in eyeliners, lipsticks, nail polishes, blushes and eye shadows that have a purple tone to them. It’s now safe to use in makeup form, especially around the eyes. According to the FDA, Manganese Violet is used as a colorant, and safe for cosmetic use and personal products like eye makeup. But it is also safe as an indirect food colorant if it’s under 2% by weight of polymers and under the conditions, the FDA specifies for safe use. It’s considered to be a good pigment for cosmetics due to its vibrancy and hue. The manganese violet pigment can range from reddish to bluish shades of purple. The shade can also brighten white and absorb yellow light.
The compound is particularly good for plastics for its lightfastness, weather resistance and heat stability on hard and rigid plastics.
Reference:
Finlay, Victoria. “Manganese Violet.” The Brilliant History of Color in Art, Getty Publications, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 2014, pp. 94–97.
https://cameo.mfa.org/wiki/Manganese_violet
Banner Credit:
Cropped image of the painting Rouen Cathedral, West Façade, Sunlight 1894. Public Domain – Wikipedia.
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