What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
ThatPainter is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn More
Researchers identified the vivid turquoise blue in Jackson Pollock’s Number 1A, 1948 as manganese blue, also known as PB33. The finding, reported in 2025 by a team led by Museum of Modern Art conservation scientist Abed Haddad and Stanford chemist Edward I. Solomon, resolves an earlier uncertainty about this painting’s blue—not every blue passage in Pollock’s work.
Which Pollock painting contains manganese blue?
The identification applies to the turquoise paint in Number 1A, 1948, a painting in the Museum of Modern Art’s collection. Stanford announced the finding on September 17, 2025, naming MoMA’s Abed Haddad and Stanford’s Edward I. Solomon among the research leaders. Stanford Department of Chemistry’s report describes the result.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →#1 Best Overall
- A very high level of lightfastness thanks to the use of pure and non-fading pigments. Even after several decades works of art retain their original color.
- An exceptionally durable paint film (the binding agent consists of 100% acrylic resin), for an everlasting result.
- Alkali resistant, consequently suitable for wall paintings. Ease of use.
- The paint can be thinned easily with water.
- Alkali resistant, consequently suitable for wall paintings. Ease of use Short drying time: thin films of paint dry within half an hour.
It is a painting-specific finding. It does not establish that Pollock used manganese blue in every blue area of his paintings, or even in another particular work. For example, the Metropolitan Museum describes pale blue among the colors in Pollock’s Number 28, 1950, but that color description does not identify its pigment. The Met’s entry for Number 28, 1950 is a separate work and not evidence of manganese blue there.
Why is it called a 77-year mystery?
Number 1A, 1948 dates to 1948, and the identification was announced in 2025: the difference is approximately 77 years. That calculation describes the time between the painting’s date and the report, not a documented 77-year continuous search by scientists.
Rank #2
- Production of the beautiful barium-based pigment ceased in the early 1990's due to environmental and safety concerns. This modern mixture approximates the richness of manganese safely and affordably.
- ASTM Lightfastness I (Excellent); Semi-Transparent; Pigment(s): PW4 (Zinc Oxide), PB15:3 (Copper Phthalocyanine), PG7 (Chlorinated Copper Phthalocyanine); Vegan
- EXCEPTIONALLY SMOOTH, THICK TEXTURE retains brushstrokes and palette knife marks
- FORMULATION - Each color is formulated uniquely depending on the nature of the pigment resulting in a range of sheen and opacity across the line
- Made in the USA with globally sourced materials by an employee-owned company with more than 40 years of experience making paint for professional artists
How did researchers move from possibility to identification?
Earlier analysis left the pigment uncertain
A 2016 technical study used macro-X-ray fluorescence mapping and multivariate curve resolution to analyze Number 1A, 1948. It listed manganese blue, or PB33, as one possible identity for the turquoise paint, while noting that further analysis was needed to confirm pigment identities. The 2016 study in npj Heritage Science documents that earlier stage.
The 2025 report describes confirmation
The 2025 report presents manganese blue as the identified pigment, turning the earlier possibility into a reported identification. Together, the two accounts show a distinction that matters in technical art analysis: mapping and interpreting a painted area can narrow the candidates, while a tentative match is not yet a confirmed identity. The available report does not establish the exact instruments or sample preparation used for the 2025 identification, so those details should not be inferred.
Free tools Windows power users keep installed
One-click scans. No signup required.
Rank #3
- Production of the beautiful barium-based pigment ceased in the early 1990's due to environmental and safety concerns. This modern mixture approximates the richness of manganese safely and affordably.
- ASTM Lightfastness I (Excellent); Semi-Transparent; Pigment(s): PW4 (Zinc Oxide), PB15:3 (Copper Phthalocyanine), PG7 (Chlorinated Copper Phthalocyanine); Vegan
- VERSATILITY - Blends easily with all acrylic colors, and readily tint gels, mediums, gessoes, and grounds, making them extremely versatile for various techniques including fine brushwork, glazing, staining, water media techniques, and more
- TECHNIQUE - Fluids allow for smooth flowing applications while retaining color intensity, tinting strength, film integrity, and adhesion
- Made in the USA with globally sourced materials by an employee-owned company with more than 40 years of experience making paint for professional artists
What is manganese blue, or PB33?
Manganese blue is a synthetic pigment. Stanford says it was phased out in the 1990s because of concerns about toxicity in its manufacturing process. Stanford Report’s account of the pigment provides that historical context.
The phase-out statement concerns manufacturing and does not by itself establish whether a particular paint is currently sold, whether a product using a similar name has the same composition, or whether such a product is safe to use. The identification in Pollock’s painting is not a recommendation to buy or handle a modern paint product.
Rank #4
- PURE PIGMENTS - Heavy Body Acrylic is known for its rich, permanent color. Our chemists use the latest basket bead-mill technology to bring out the best in every pigment. Tiny reinforced ceramic beads give fine dispersion, great color development, strength and brightness.
- HIGH VISCOSITY - This is our highest viscosity paint. Good surface drag gives excellent handling and blending characteristics, with increased open-working time. Never too slippery, or too sticky. Heavy Body Acrylic delivers intense color in the ideal consistency for a range of techniques.
- VERSATILE - The low-odor acrylic resin base in Heavy Body represents the latest in acrylic resin technology, giving you increased open time and colors of great clarity and vibrancy, with minimal wet-to-dry shift. The paint film is highly flexible, durable, non-yellowing, UV-resistant and water-resistant when dry.
- NON-CRACKING - A flexible, crack-free result. Even when you go in thick. Impasto and 3D applications dry without fracturing due to advanced acrylic technology which brings flexibility to the paint film. Giving you a durable, noncracking finish.
- ARCHIVAL QUALITY - On a client’s wall. In a gallery. Your work needs to stay as you intended. The pigments in Heavy Body are lightfast. This means your work will have the greatest archival permanence possible – at least 50 years+ in gallery conditions – with no color shifting or fading, to stay vibrant and true.
Why does the identification matter to painting conservation?
Knowing which materials make up a painting gives conservators a clearer account of the object they are preserving. In this case, the finding identifies the turquoise pigment in a specific Pollock painting and clarifies a question left open by the 2016 analysis. The reports cited here do not describe a resulting treatment decision or a new conservation protocol, so the significance is the improved material identification rather than a claimed change in how the painting is treated.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Production of the beautiful barium-based pigment ceased in the early 1990's due to environmental and safety concerns. This modern mixture approximates the richness of manganese safely and affordably.
- ASTM Lightfastness I (Excellent); Semi-Transparent; Pigment(s): PW4 (Zinc Oxide), PB15:3 (Copper Phthalocyanine), PG7 (Chlorinated Copper Phthalocyanine); Vegan
- EXCEPTIONALLY SMOOTH, THICK TEXTURE retains brushstrokes and palette knife marks
- FORMULATION - Each color is formulated uniquely depending on the nature of the pigment resulting in a range of sheen and opacity across the line
- Made in the USA with globally sourced materials by an employee-owned company with more than 40 years of experience making paint for professional artists
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute
