VERMILION is a brilliant scarlet pigment composed of the sulphide of mercury, HgS. To a small extent it is obtained direct from pure and bright-coloured portions of the native ore Cinnabar (q.v.), but it is chiefly an artificial preparation. The process of manufacture, as conducted principally in Holland, consists in making an intimate mixture of mercury with about one-sixth of its weight of sulphur, and these under the influence of a gentle heat combine to form the black sulphide of mercury called aethiop’s mineral. In successive portions pieces of this compound are thrown into tall earthen pots the lower parts of which are kept at a red heat, and the mass sublimes, depositing a coating of artificial cinnabar on the iron covers and over the upper part of the pots themselves. At the end of the subliming process, the pots are broken, the deposit of cinnabar is scraped off, ground in a mill, levigated, and when dry it is ready for use as vermilion. The pigment is also prepared by the wet method (see Mercury, vol. xvi. p. 34), and it is said that Chinese vermilion owes its superiority to being made in this way. In addition to its brilliance, vermilion is a pigment of great intensity and durability, remaining unaffected by acid fumes. Being costly, it is much subject to adulteration; but the fraudulent additions may easily be detected by volatilization, which in the case of pure vermilion leaves no residue. For antimony vermilion, see Pigments, vol. xix. p. 87.