Joyce Dixon
Published: 21 January 2019
Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours (1814): the first portable guide to identifying, communicating and replicating colours in the natural world.
University of Edinburgh
Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours (1814): the first portable guide to identifying, communicating and replicating colours in the natural world.
Each of its hand-painted swatches is accompanied by a colour name, a description, and the names of specimens from the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms on which each hue can be found. Its compact format and comprehensive list of colours made Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours extremely useful to contemporary physicians, horticulturists, painters and zoologists – the most famous being Charles Darwin, who carried a copy of the second edition with him on-board the HMS Beagle in 1831, and directly quoted its colours to describe the flora and fauna he encountered on the voyage to South America. Despite its practical impact and its influence on painters and colourists, surprisingly little research has been published relating specifically to Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours.
Building on my own MA research, this project will examine the origins, influences, use and legacy of Syme’s book, in order to address this lack of academic interest and make a case for the historical significance of Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours.
First published: 21 January 2019