Light purple slate powder. From Mels, Switzerland. Contains iron/manganese.
This color is found in Italian paintings and also north of the Alps, where the Asam brothers used it in churches for the cloaks of angels and saints. Although the origin of the pigment is unclear, the indistinguishable qualities of this mineral are present in several regions. The first find was in the south of France on the French Riviera, but this one comes from an excavation between Chur and Zurich, Switzerland.
Together with slate green and grey of the same origin, these colors create a very special mineral harmony. Their uniqueness comes from a combination of shimmer and titanium, which produces a pigment with a higher opacity than other earth pigments.