zaffer

[ zaf-er ]

/ ˈzæf ər /

an artificial mixture, resembling smalt, containing cobalt oxide and, usually, silica, used to produce a blue color in glass and in ceramic glazes.

Origin of zaffer

1655–65; < Italian zaffera, perhaps < Latin sapphīra sapphire

zacynthus, zadar, zaddik, zadkine, zadok, zaffer, zaftig, zafu, zag, zagazig, zaghlul

Zaffre is now made from the cobalt ores found in these hills.

The Mosaic History of the Creation of the World |Thomas Wood
Zaffre, digested in aqua regia, and diluted with four times its weight of water, is sometimes employed; a green tint results.

The Short-story |William Patterson Atkinson
Zaffre is the roasted mineral ground with sand, while smalt, a term used more frequently, is the fused mixture with sand.

De Re Metallica |Georgius Agricola
A little oxide of cobalt or zaffre is frequently added to alter the shade.

Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I |Arnold Cooley

The first practical use of cobalt was in the form of zaffre or cobalt blue.

De Re Metallica |Georgius Agricola

zaffer

/ (ˈzæfə) /

impure cobalt oxide, used to impart a blue colour to enamels

C17: from Italian zaffera; perhaps related to Latin sapphīrus sapphire