Fresco

(frěs'ko,) pl. FRESCOES. (Fine Arts.) Painting al fresco, upon fresh or wet ground, is executed with mineral and earthy pigments upon a freshly laid stucco ground of lime or gypsum. Burnt pigments are the best for this style of painting; they are generally ground with clean water, and rendered so thin that they can be worked with the brush; to some are added lime, milk, . The pigments unite with the lime or gypsum ground, and are therefore extremely durable; but as this ground, after standing a night, is unfit for painting on, there must be only a sufficient quantity for one day prepared. Fresco-painting is therefore difficult, as it cannot be retouched. This art, which is employed generally for large pictures on walls and ceilings, was understood by the ancients, but first made of real importance by the Italians, in the 16th cent. [s. 386]