Lakespigments

Lakes (pigments). The term lakes as applied to pigments is derived from an Italian term - laccae, which was given to pigments obtained from dye liquors. In dyeing it is frequently necessary for the formation or fixation of colour to mordant the cloth before or after subjecting to the dye. If, instead of thus forming the pigment in the cloth, the colour material be precipitated as a solid by means of a mordant, the solid material resulting is known as a lake, which, hence, usually consists of an organic colouring product united with a metallic salt. A large number of such pigments are known and commonly employed, as, e.g. madder lake; alizarin red lake, formed by mixing a caustic soda solution of alizarin red to a solution of alum with a little calcium chloride; carmine lake, Dutch pink, and quercitron lake, and an innumerable array obtained from the different so-called aniline dyes.