Sir Theodore de Mayerne, Pictoria, sculptoria et quae subalternarum artium (the 'Mayerne manuscript'), Sloane MS...

The manuscript contains miscellaneous notes on the subject of artistic techniques, including the making of pigments, oils and varnishes, the priming and preparation of surfaces for painting, and the repair and conservation of paintings. The manuscript also contains notes of chemical experiments, including diagrams and sheets of pigment samples.The notes were gathered in stages between 1620 and 1646 by Sir Theodore de Mayerne, physician to James I and Charles I. Many are written by his own hand, however Mayerne also drew on the services of amanuenses (such as John Colladon) and inserted leaves of notes written by other, miscellaneous hands.Many of the notes were gathered from Mayerne's first-hand contact with both major and minor artists and artisans of his day, including Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck. The manuscript also contains letters from artists, such as Jean Petitot.For a complete English translation of the manuscript, see: Lost Secrets of Flemish Painting: Including the First Complete English Translation of the de Mayerne Manuscript, B.M. Sloane 2052, ed. by Donald C. Fels and others (Floyd, VA: Alchemist Inc., 2004).