Maya blue () is a unique bright

turquoise Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone for millennia due to its hue. The robi ...

or azure blue

pigment A pigment is a powder used to add or alter color or change visual appearance. Pigments are completely or nearly solubility, insoluble and reactivity (chemistry), chemically unreactive in water or another medium; in contrast, dyes are colored sub ...

manufactured by cultures of

pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era, also known as the pre-contact era, or as the pre-Cabraline era specifically in Brazil, spans from the initial peopling of the Americas in the Upper Paleolithic to the onset of European col ...

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...

, such as the

Mayas Maya () are an ethnolinguistic group of Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived within that historical region. Today ...

and

Aztecs The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the ...

, during a period extending from approximately the 8th century to around 1860 CE. It is found in mural paintings on architectural buildings, ceramic pieces, sculptures, codices, and even in post-conquest Indochristian artworks and mural decorations.

Manufacture

The Maya blue pigment is a composite of organic and inorganic constituents, primarily

indigo dye Indigo dye is an organic compound with a distinctive indigo, blue color. Indigo is a natural dye obtained from the leaves of some plants of the Indigofera#Uses, ''Indigofera'' genus, in particular ''Indigofera tinctoria''. Dye-bearing ''Indigofer ...

s derived from the leaves of anil (''Indigofera suffruticosa'', called ''ch'oj'' in Mayan) plants combined with

palygorskite Palygorskite (Russian: Палыгорскит) or attapulgite is a magnesium aluminium phyllosilicate with the chemical formula ) that occurs in a type of clay soil common to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the types of fuller's ea ...

, a natural clay and type of

fuller's earth Fuller's earth is a term for various clays used as an absorbent, filter, or bleaching agent. Products labeled fuller's earth typically consist of palygorskite (also known as attapulgite) or bentonite. Primary modern uses include as absorbents ...

. Palygorskite is most common in the Southern United States, but is not known to exist in abundant deposits in Mesoamerica.Arnold (2005); Haude (1997). Smaller trace amounts of other mineral additives have also been identified.

Historical use

Maya blue first appeared around 800, and it was still used in the 16th century in several Convents of Colonial Mexico, notably in the paintings of the indigenous Nahua painter Juan Gerson in Tecamachalco. These paintings are a clear example of the combination of indigenous and European techniques sometimes known as '' Arte Indocristiano''. After that, the techniques for its production were lost in Mexico, but in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

there are examples from as late as 1830.

Resistance to weathering

Despite time and the harsh weathering conditions, paintings coloured by Maya blue have not faded over time. The color has resisted chemical solvents and

acids An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis acid. The first category of acids are the ...

such as

nitric acid Nitric acid is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but samples tend to acquire a yellow cast over time due to decomposition into nitrogen oxide, oxides of nitrogen. Most com ...

. Its resistance against chemical aggression (acids,

alkalis In chemistry, an alkali (; from the Arabic word , ) is a basic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a soluble base has a pH greater than 7.0. The a ...

solvents A solvent (from the Latin '' solvō'', "loosen, untie, solve") is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas, or a supercritical fluid. Water is a solvent for p ...

, etc.) and

biodegradation Biodegradation is the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. It is generally assumed to be a natural process, which differentiates it from composting. Composting is a human-driven process in which biodegrada ...

was tested, and it was shown that Maya blue is an extremely resistant pigment, but it can be destroyed using very intense acid treatment under

reflux Reflux is a technique involving the condensation of vapors and the return of this condensate to the system from which it originated. It is used in industrial and laboratory distillations. It is also used in chemistry to supply energy to Chemical ...

. Because of its exceptionally durable colour properties, Maya Blue is an iconic system that led to paleo-inspired chemistry, i.e. the recreation of new pigments such as ''Maya Violet'' which exploits the molecular structure of Maya Blue towards new pigment combinations.

Research on chemical composition

The chemical composition of the compound was determined by

powder diffraction Powder diffraction is a scientific technique using X-ray, neutron, or electron diffraction on powder or microcrystalline samples for structural characterization of materials. An instrument dedicated to performing such powder measurements is ca ...

in the 1950s and was found to be a composite of

and indigo, most likely derived from the leaves of the ''añil''. An actual recipe to reproduce Maya blue pigment was published in 1993 by a Mexican historian and chemist, Constantino Reyes-Valerio. The combination of different clays (palygorskite and

montmorillonite Montmorillonite is a very soft phyllosilicate group of minerals that form when they precipitate from water solution as microscopic crystals, known as clay. It is named after Montmorillon in France. Montmorillonite, a member of the smectite grou ...

), together with the use of the leaves of the ''añil'' and the actual process is described in his paper. Reyes-Valerio's contributions were possibly due to his combined background of history and chemistry, through a thorough revision of primary texts ( Sahagún, Hernandez, Jimenez, and others), microscopic analysis of the mural paintings and

fourier transform infrared spectroscopy Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) is a technique used to obtain an infrared Electromagnetic spectrum, spectrum of Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorption or Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emission of a solid, liquid, ...

. After the formula for the production was published in the book ''De Bonampak al Templo Mayor: Historia del Azul Maya en Mesoamerica'', many developments in the chemical analysis of the pigment occurred in collaborations between Reyes-Valerio and European scientists. A comprehensive study on the pigment which describes history, the experimental study techniques (diffraction studies, infrared spectroscopies,

Raman amplification Raman amplification "Raman effect"
. ''

Wheaton College discovered the production of Maya Blue was an integral component of the ancient rituals held at Chichén Itzá. Near a sacred natural sinkhole, indigo and

were combined through a heating process involving the burning of a mixture that included copal incense,

, and the leaves of the indigo plant. Subsequently, the individuals involved in the rituals were covered with the blue paint and thrown into the pit to please the rain god

Chaak Chaac (also spelled Chac or, in Classic Mayan, Chaahk ) is the name of the Maya god of rain, thunder, and lightning. With his lightning axe, Chaac strikes the clouds, causing them to produce thunder and rain. Chaac corresponds to Tlaloc among t ...

Uses in cultural contexts

Pre-Columbian American culture * In the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, Maya blue was used as a

colorant A colourant/colour additive (British spelling) or colorant/color additive (American spelling) is a substance that is added or applied in order to change the colour of a material or surface. Colourants can be used for many purposes including printin ...

artworks,

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

mural A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...

s, and

textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

(probably), and to illuminate

Mesoamerican codices Mesoamerican codices are manuscripts that present traits of the Mesoamerican indigenous pictoric tradition, either in content, style, or in regards to their symbolic conventions. The unambiguous presence of Mesoamerican writing systems in some of ...

. For example, many illustrations in the Florentine Codex written by

Bernardino de Sahagún Bernardino de Sahagún ( – 5 February 1590) was a Franciscan friar, missionary priest and pioneering ethnographer who participated in the Catholic evangelization of colonial New Spain (now Mexico). Born in Sahagún, Spain, in 1499, he jour ...

contain the Maya blue color. * The use of Maya blue was corroborated in the Grolier Codex, and helped to authenticate the document, now known as Codex Maya of Mexico. * Recent research also suggests Maya blue may have played an important role in human sacrifices to

Chaac Chaac (also spelled Chac or, in Classic Maya language, Classic Mayan, Chaahk ) is the name of the Maya civilization, Maya god of rain, thunder, and lightning. With his lightning axe, Chaac strikes the clouds, causing them to produce thunder and r ...

at Chichén Itzá, both produced at the sacrificial site and used to paint the bodies of the victims. * Maya blue is associated with the center of a flame. Holding the most heat and therefore the most tonalli, the blue color is considered precious.

Gallery

File:The Florentine Codex- Lunar Eclipse.tiff, Maya blue used in the Florentine Codex fol. 227v File:Bonampak mural. Room 1. Musicians and dancers.jpg,

Bonampak Bonampak (known anciently as ''Ake'' or, in its immediate area as ''Usiij Witz'', 'Vulture Hill') is an ancient Maya civilization, Maya archaeological site in the Mexico, Mexican Political divisions of Mexico, state of Chiapas. The site is approxi ...

mural

References

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Azul Maya
descriptive site by Reyes-Valerio {{shades of blue, Maya Blue Maya science and technology Mesoamerican art Pre-Columbian art Maya art Shades of blue Shades of azure