Which pigment is identified as the first synthetic pigment of the modern era?

Which pigment is identified as the first synthetic pigment of the modern era?

• A. Prussian blue
• B. Ultramarine
• C. Cadmium yellow
• D. Vermilion

Answer: (A)

The key idea is the shift from pigments found in nature to colors produced by chemistry, marking a turning point in art materials. Prussian blue, discovered in Berlin around 1704, is recognized as the first synthetic pigment of the modern era. It was created by a chemical process involving iron salts and cyanide, giving painters a deep, reliable blue that could be made in large quantities at a steady cost. This breakthrough showed that pigments could be manufactured rather than mined, opening the door to a whole family of synthetic colors and changing how palettes were developed and used in painting and printmaking.

Ultramarine, while renowned for its brilliant blue, originally came from lapis lazuli and only later had a synthetic form developed; cadmium yellow is a later synthetic pigment from the 19th century, and vermilion has uses dating back centuries, though synthetic versions also exist. The importance of Prussian blue lies in its being the earliest successful example of color manufacture, signaling the birth of modern pigment chemistry.