Mars Black: Kettle Point

I’m very happy to report that I have had some immediate (although unexpected) success with the pyrite nodules collected from Kettle Point: I have created Mars Black!

Mars pigments are a group of synthetically produced iron oxide colours which can range from yellow-red-violet-black. They represent a purer form of the same material that gives colour to the ochre pigments because they don’t have any clays associated with them. Because of this purity, they are also typically brighter and more opaque.

This is very exciting for me, but wholly unexpected. After I had finished calcifying a sample of the pyrite I opened the crucible and saw that the whole mass had turned black. I thought it was ruined! I’m not sure what processed me to put a magnet to the mass; pyrite is not magnetic at all but perhaps inspiration whispered in my ear … Once the magnet got close enough the whole mass of black powder jumped around it and formed a mane around it’s head. Then I suddenly realized that I had created the mineral magnetite, or in pigment lingo, Mars Black.

So why are they called, ‘Mars’ colours? The whole group of these pigments comes out of the eighteenth century and today we take the title Mars from the latin, martius, which orginally described this pigment. To the alchemist, Mars symbolised iron; what could be more appropriate to describe this group of pigments?