Editing Vermilion (section)

=== Antiquity ===
The first documented use of vermilion pigment, made with ground cinnabar, dates to 8000–7000 BC, and was found at the [[Neolithic]] village of [[Çatalhöyük]], in modern-day Turkey. Cinnabar was mined in Spain beginning in about 5300 BC. In China, the first documented use of cinnabar as a pigment was by the [[Yangshao culture]] (5000–4000 BC), where it was used to paint ceramics, to cover the walls and floors of rooms, and for ritual ceremonies.<ref name=ThoughtCo>{{Cite web |author=Hirst, K. Kris |date=Aug 25, 2020 |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/cinnabar-the-ancient-pigment-of-mercury-170556 |title=Cinnabar, the Ancient Pigment of Mercury |work=ThoughtCo |access-date=2018-02-04}}</ref>

The principal source of cinnabar for the ancient Romans was the Almaden mine in northwest Spain, which was worked by prisoners. Since the ore of mercury was highly toxic, a term in the mines was a near-guaranteed death sentence. [[Pliny the Elder]] described the mines this way:

<blockquote>Nothing is more carefully guarded. It is forbidden to break up or refine the cinnabar on the spot. They send it to Rome in its natural condition, under seal, to the extent of some ten thousand librae ([[Ancient Roman units of measurement#Weight|Roman pounds]] thus 3289&nbsp;kg) a year. The sales price is fixed by law to keep it from becoming impossibly expensive, and the price fixed is seventy sesterces a pound.<ref>Daniel V. Thompson, ''The Materials and Techniques of Medieval Painting'', p. 103.</ref></blockquote>

In Rome, the precious pigment was used to paint frescoes, decorate statues, and [[Cosmetics in Ancient Rome#Rouge|even as a cosmetic]]. In [[Roman triumphs]], the victors had their faces covered with vermilion powder, and the face of Jupiter on the [[Capitoline Hill]] was also colored vermilion.<ref name="StClair" /> Cinnabar was used to paint the walls of some of the most luxurious villas in [[Pompeii]], including the Villa of the Mysteries (Italian: ''[[Villa of the Mysteries|Villa dei Misteri]]).''<ref name="StClair" /> [[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]] reported its painters stole a large portion of the expensive pigment by frequently washing their brushes and saving the wash water.<ref name="Anne Varichon p. 112">Anne Varichon, ''Couleurs : Pigments et teintures dans les mains des peuples'', p. 112</ref>

In the [[Byzantine Empire]], the use of cinnabar/the vermilion color was reserved for the use of the imperial family and administrators; official letters and imperial decrees were written in vermilion ink, made with cinnabar.<ref name="Anne Varichon p. 112" />