The order of colours. Colour systems and colour reference tables in 18th century Europe

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Colours have at all times been an important point of interest and research, in most different fields such as physics/ natural philosophy, chemistry, natural history, painting, printing and dyeing. At the same time, colour research has only rarely been put centre stage in historical research. The present project proposes to analyze, under the specific aspect of colour systematization, the full breadth of European colour research for the important period of the 18th and early 19th centuries, i.e. from Newton to Field. In two parallel, but connected diachronic studies, it will collect and analyze all colour systems and colour reference tables, respectively. It will analyze those systems in their own right, investigate their mutual relations and references and their tradition lines, and situate them in their proper cultural, technical, theoretical and experimental context. As a result, a fullfledged panorama of 18th ct. attempts of colour systematization and reference will emerge. A particular challenge for the project is to find appropriate criteria of grouping and classifying the large number of systems. The project will analyze in detail, moreover, the role of natural history and of technical developments in colour systematization. To reach its goals, the project will combine detailed analysis and encompassing prosopographic research.