Nicosia Green, PG23

Mixed green earths with cobalt blue, enhanced. Not alkali resistant.

Composition: Ferrous silicate, Potassium ferric, Manganese, Aluminium and Oxide
 Fe, Mg, Al, and K 

• Lightfastness - thinned: 8 (1 is bad, 8 is best)
• Lightfastness - medium: 8 (1 is bad, 8 is best)
• Lightfastness - concentrated: 8 (1 is bad, 8 is best)
• ColorIndex: PG 23.77009
• Suitability: Oil, Tempera, Watercolor / Gouache
• Colors: Green
• Forms: powder
• Solubility in water: insoluble

Natural green and greenish-gray minerals, colored primarily by iron, chrome, nickel, or iron-II-silicates, have long been used as pigments. Because their varying chemical compositions made early identification difficult, they were often just named after their geographic origin.

For example, artists utilized a local hydrated chrome-iron-silicate in Russia, while medieval Tuscany offered plentiful green earths and minerals like Epidote. Since deposits were regionally abundant but scattered, these minerals were mostly ground and used locally rather than traded widely. Due to this extreme local variation, historical texts must be supplemented by chemical analysis of specific regional artworks to accurately identify the exact green minerals different artists used across different cities.