Michael Harding Artists Oil Colours - Genuine Naples Yellow Dark (No. 606) - 40ml

Inorganic – This is the darker of the two Lead Antimoniates (Genuine Naples Light & Dark), closer to the shade offered by makers in more recent times. Most manufacturers, except Michael Harding, replaced the genuine pigment with rather inaccurate substitute blends. Genuine Naples Yellow Dark is a classic shade good for low flesh undertones.

Lead Antimoniate, in genuine versions, appears to have been used as a pigment since the 5th century B.C. and has been manufactured since the 1400s, becoming one of the most relied-upon colours and in constant demand. Michael Harding is one of just a few colourmen who continue to make the genuine article. He does so because its vivid, dense, almost ochre yellow cannot be mimicked, as portraitists and figure painters will attest. It’s more powerful and yet more muted than its equivalents among the Cadmium range, and its handling characteristics are incomparable. Because it tends to react when parsed with steel rollers, to this day I still grind it with stone.

Colour Index PY41
Drying Speed Very Fast
Transparency Opaque
Lightfastness Excellent
Oil Content Very Low
Tint Power Average
Toxicity Toxic
ASTM D-4236 Yes
Prop 65 Yes