Abstract
MR. AITKEN in his letter in NATURE, Oct. 12, seems to confound primary with pure colours; it is true they are pure in a certain sense, but in what sense is fully explained in Prof. J. C. Maxwell's lecture, given in NATURE, vol. iv. p. 13. All the experiments mentioned by Mr. Aitken merely prove that the blue colours we commonly see are mixed ones; but the same is the case with almost all the colours we see, while any tint of the spectrum, whether primary or not, may be had pure, i.e., consisting of homogeneous light. Likewise colours which appear just the same to the eye may be made of very different components.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
BACKHOUSE, T. Is Blue a Primary Colour?. Nature 5, 25 (1871). https://doi.org/10.1038/005025c0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/005025c0
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.