Verdigris
/ˈvɜːr.dɪ.ɡriːs/noun
A green or bluish-green patina that forms on copper, brass, or bronze.
Did you know?Verdigris entered English through a French phrase for the blue-green copper pigment/patina, and its color was prized in art and alchemy even while it was literally metal decaying in the open air.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
viridis
“green, fresh, flourishing”
Late Latin / Medieval Latin
Latin
viride Graecum
“Greek green; a blue-green copper compound/pigment”
Old French
Old French
vert-de-gris
“green of Greece; greenish copper rust/pigment”
14th–15th Century
English
vertgrez / verdigris
“The green patina or pigment made from copper corrosion”
Modern English
English
verdigris
“A green or bluish-green coating on copper, brass, or bronze”