Understanding Usage of Ochre and Chemical

Binders in indigenous Australian Art

Ochre is the earliest known earth pigment to have been used by humans. The benefits of such a
material can be seen in the paintings created by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 40-
50,000 years ago as well as more than 70,000 years ago in Africa, further exemplifying its long-
lasting effect. (Ninbella, 2022, Wadley, 2010) Apart from its longevity, its safe, non-toxic structure as
well as its resistance to moisture and smear has made it an extremely useful makeup product.
(Banarjee & Samanta, 2021) Understanding ochre’s resistance to nature’s erosion because of its
ionic bonds and its usage with chemical binders can help us understand its cultural significance and
usage today both culturally and in our everyday life.

Key Terms (Collins, 2023):

Pigment: a substance that gives something a particular colour.

Ochre: any of various natural earths containing ferric oxide, silica, and alumina where it is used as
yellow or red pigments

Chemical Binder: a material used to bind separate particles together, give an appropriate
consistency, or facilitate adhesion to a surface.

Haematite:
The main pigment of ochre that will be discussed in this
piece will be red, characterised by the use of haematite
(Fe2O3) as can be seen in Figure 1, although there are
others such as yellow (Fe(OH)O); this is because of its
social significance in Indigenous Australian as well as
usage around the world as the most common source of
obtaining iron. Although it has many uses as iron ore in
our “steel-based society” (Kirkby, 2023), when by itself
it’s economic factors can mostly be seen in its usage as
part of many eyeshadows, blush and lipstick because of
not just its previously mentioned factors but also a
specific “staying power” that allows it to last longer with
less potency. (Banarjee & Samanta, 2021) Unfortunately, Figure 1: Haematite, Kremer Pigments,
the natural haematite used by Indigenous Australian https://shop.kremerpigments.com/us/shop/pigment
holds environmental issues such as with the FDA where s/48651-haematite-intense-tinting.html
there is a limit of the amount of heavy metals allowed in
iron oxides such as Pb with only 10ppm or Hg with 3ppm. (Code of Federal Regulations Title 21,
2022). This however didn’t stop the Indigenous Australians who used it with fats, oils, water, plant
juices, and bodily fluids (Nibbs, 2012).

Chemical Binders:
We still do not have much information on all the binders
used with ochre as it is only in the recent past that we
were able to take samples from cave paintings without

Figure 2: Pictograph created by Pecos Indians using

haematite in Fate Bell Shelter, Seminole Canyon
damaging the actual painting itself and ruining the heritage. This is because of the many social
aspects of haematite in cultures all around the globe as a “life giving blood,” (Wreschner, 1976) as
can be seen in Figure 24. The Haematite was seen particularly used with water as even though it is
an ionic compound its bonds are slightly covalent (VCAA Chemistry study design pg24, 2023) leading
to much stronger bonds that water is unable to break through, as can be seen if Figure 3 of its
structural formula (VCAA Chemistry study design pg24, 2023) displaying why it forms a mixture as a
result, keeping its distinct red pigment. This can also be seen in its metallic properties with only 5.0
on the Mohs Hardness Scale, showing that it was intolerable against water (VCAA Chemistry study
design pg24, 2023).

Figure 3: Structure of Iron(III) Oxide by BYJU’s, https://byjus.com/question-answer/the-formula-

of-hematite-is/

Conclusion:

Red ochre and its components had large uses in Indigenous Australian culture thousands of years
ago as well as in every aspect of our lives today, whether it be the buildings we are in, the makeup
products we use or the stainless-steel pots and pans we use. We also discussed the usage of
chemical binders in keeping the ochre adhered to the walls of cave paintings and the limitations of
our understanding of this as we have only recently gained the ability to take readings from these
heritage sites, thereby showing an area for further research.

Bibliography:

Banerjee , T., & Samanta, A. (2021). Metal oxides for cosmetics and sunscreens. In Metal
oxides for biomedical and biosensor applications (pp. 119–135). essay, ELSEVIER.

Byju. (2023). The formula of haematite is . The Formula of Hematite is.

https://byjus.com/question-answer/the-formula-of-hematite-is/

Hawkes, H. (2023). Ochre Art. ninbella.art. https://www.ninbella.com/collections/ochre-art

Kirkby, K. (2023). Hematite. Hematite | Common Minerals.

https://commonminerals.esci.umn.edu/minerals-g-m/hematite

Nibbs, S. E. (2012). Binding Ochre to Theory. Pomona Senior Theses, 122.

https://doi.org/http://scholarship.claremont.edu/pomona_theses/122

Skrypczak, W. (2015, October 1). Prehistoric pigments. RSC Education.

https://edu.rsc.org/resources/prehistoric-pigments/1540.article
VCAA. (2023). Victorian Certificate of Education Chemistry Study Design. VCAA.