Thangka pigments traditionally use precious mineral gems such as gold, silver, pearl, agate, coral, turquoise, malachite and cinnabar, and plants such as saffron, rhubarb and indigo as pigments to show sacredness. These natural materials ensure that the painted Thangka is bright and dazzling, and it is still bright and bright after hundreds of years.

Commonly used mineral pigments are: Renbu clay (white), cinnabar (red), celestite (azurite), malachite (turquoise), realgar/orpiment (yellow) and Huang Dan (orange). Plant pigments are often used in cyan, rouge, etc. The production process of plant pigments is simpler than that of mineral pigments. First, flowers and trees or bark are collected, washed, soaked or boiled to get juice of different colors, and then evaporated to make colored pills.

Extended data

Thangka painters divide all pigments needed for Thangka painting into nine categories: earth, stone, water, fire, wood, grass, flowers, bones and precious stones.

Pigments belonging to soil are: white clay, soda ash, diamond soil and red soil. Stone pigments include: silver ore, chalcopyrite, mica, lapis lazuli, patina, cinnabar, tortoise shell, ochre and so on. Waterborne pigments include: Huang Dan, Sangzhure, Indigo, Indigo, etc. Pigments belonging to fire include ink, arsenolite and realgar.

Pigments belonging to wood are: mangrove, golden tree, birch, hardwood, purple stem and so on. Pigments belonging to grasses are: Luxun grass, Coptis chinensis, Stellera chamaejasme, amaranth and so on. Pigments belonging to flowers are: wild chrysanthemum, white birch, primrose and so on. Pigments belonging to bones are: clam, conch, keel, etc. Pigments belonging to gems are: gold, silver, dzi beads, coral, turquoise and so on.

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