Rublev Colours Pigment Plumbonacrite White Lead - 100 g

Plumbonacrite Lead White is a basic lead oxycarbonate pigment phase with the formula Pb₅(CO₃)3O(OH)₂. It differs compositionally from ordinary basic lead carbonate, or hydrocerussite, the principal phase in traditional lead white. Plumbonacrite is a rare natural mineral and can also occur as a synthetic lead white phase. In artists’ materials and conservation literature, it is significant because it may indicate unusual manufacture, alkaline leaded media, limited carbon dioxide during formation, or alteration of lead-rich pigments such as red lead.

Unlike conventional lead white, which usually consists mainly of hydrocerussite with variable cerussite, plumbonacrite is a carbonate-poorer lead oxycarbonate. In the traditional corrosion route for making lead white, it can form as an early intermediate but normally converts to hydrocerussite and then cerussite as carbonation proceeds. Its persistence as a pigment phase is therefore unusual and diagnostically important.

Plumbonacrite Lead White is intended for artists, conservators, technical art historians, and researchers who need a lead white pigment phase distinct from ordinary basic lead carbonate. Its value lies not only in its white color, but in its unusual chemistry and its importance in the study of historical paint films, especially lead-rich paint systems and high-bodied oil paint.

For painters interested in historical materials, Plumbonacrite Lead White offers a rare opportunity to explore a lead oxycarbonate phase associated with specialized lead white chemistry. For conservation and materials research, it provides a reference material for studying the distinction between plumbonacrite, hydrocerussite, and cerussite in paint samples.

Warning: Plumbonacrite is an inorganic lead compound and must be treated as toxic if inhaled as dust or ingested. Grinding and making the pigment into paint are hazardous. Extreme care should be taken when handling the dry powder pigment to avoid inhaling dust. Do not smoke, eat, or drink while using the pigment in any form, including in a paint binder.