§1.1ΑΠΛΑ τῶν χρωμάτων ἐστὶν ὅσα τοῖς στοιχείοις συνακολουθεῖ, οἷον πυρὶ καὶ ἀέρι καὶ ὕδατι καὶ γῇ.
Simple colors are those which accompany the elements, namely fire, air, water, and earth.
Ἀὴρ μὲν γὰρ καὶ ὕδωρ καθ᾽ ἑαυτὰ τῇ φύσει λευκά, τὸ δὲ πῦρ καὶ ὁ ἥλιος ξανθά.
For air and water are by themselves naturally white, while fire and the sun are yellow.
Καὶ ἡ γῇ δ᾽ ἐστὶ φύσει λευκή, παρὰ δὲ τὴν βαφὴν πολύχρους φαίνεται.
And the earth also is naturally white, but appears multicolored on account of its staining.
§1.2Δῆλον δ᾽ ἐπὶ τῆς τέφρας τοῦτ᾽ ἐστίν· ἐκκαυθέντος γὰρ τοῦ τὴν βαφὴν πεποιηκότος ὑγροῦ λευκὴ γίνεται, οὐ παντελῶς δὲ δᾶ τὸ τῷ καπνῷ βεβάφθαι μέλανι ὄντι.
This is clear in the case of ash; for when the moisture that produced the staining has been burnt out, it becomes white, though not completely so, because of its being dyed by the smoke which is black.
Διὸ καὶ ἡ κονία ξανθὴ γίνεται, τοῦ φλογοειδοῦς καὶ μέλανος ἐπιχρώζοντος τὸ ὕδωρ.
Therefore, lye also becomes yellow, since the flame-like and the black elements tint the water.
§1.3Τὸ δὲ μέλαν χρῶμα συνακολουθεῖ τοῖς στοιχείοις εἰς ἄλληλα μεταβαλλόντων.
Black color accompanies the elements when they change into one another.
Τὰ δ᾽ ἄλλα ἐκ τούτων εὐσύνοπτα τῇ μίξει κεραννυμένων ἀλλήλοις γίνεται.
The other colors arise from these, being easily discernible by their mixture as they are blended with one another.
Τὸ δὲ σκότος ἐκλείποντος τοῦ φωτὸς γίνεται.
Darkness occurs when light fails.
Τριχῶς γὰρ τὸ μέλαν ἡμῖν φαίνεται.
For black appears to us in three ways.
§1.4῍Η γὰρ ὅλως τὸ μὴ ὁρώμενόν ἐστι τῇ φύσει μέλαν (ἁπάντων γὰρ τῶν τοιούτων ἀνακλᾶταί τι φῶς μέλαν), ἢ ἀφ᾽ ὦν μηδὲν ὅλως φέρεται φῶς πρὸς τὰς ὄψεις· τὸ γὰρ μὴ ὁρώμενον, ὅταν ὁ περιέχων τόπος ὁρᾶται, φαντασίαν ποιεῖ μέλανος.
For either that which is not seen at all is naturally black (for from all such things some black light is reflected), or it is that from which no light at all is carried to our eyes; for that which is not seen, when the surrounding place is seen, produces the appearance of black.
Φαίνεται δὲ καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἡμῖν ἅπαντα μέλανα, ἀφ᾽ ὅσων ἀραιὸν καὶ ὀλίγον ἰσχυρῶς ἀνακλᾶται τὸ φῶς.
All such things also appear black to us, from which light is reflected only sparsely and slightly, not strongly.
§1.5Διὸ καὶ αἱ σκιαὶ φαίνονται μέλαιναι.
Therefore shadows also appear black.
Ὀμοίως δὲ καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ, ὅταν τραχυνθῇ, καθάπερ ἡ τῆς θαλάττης φρίκη· διὰ γὰρ τὴν τραχύτητα τῆς ἐπιφανείας ὀλίγων τῶν αὐγῶν προσπιπτουράμουσῶν καὶ διασπωμένου τοῦ φωτός, τὸ σκιερὸν μέλαν φαίνεται.
Similarly water, too, when it is ruffled, just like the ripple of the sea; for because of the roughness of the surface, since few of the falling rays hit it and the light is scattered, the shaded part appears black.
Καὶ τὸ νέφος, ὅταν ᾖ πυκνὸν ἰσχυρῶς, διὰ τοῦτο.
And the cloud is so when it is very dense, for this reason.
§1.6Κατὰ τὰ αὐτὰ δὲ τούτοις καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ ὁ ἀήρ, ὅταν ᾖ μὴ παντελῶς διαδῦνον τὸ φῶς.
In the same way as these, water and air also appear black when light does not pass through them completely.
Καὶ γὰρ ταῦτα εἶναι δοκεῖ μέλανα, βάθος ἔχοντα, διὰ τὸ παντελῶς ἀραιὰς ἀνακλᾶσθαι τὰς ἀκτῖνας· τὰ γὰρ μεταξὺ μόρια τοῦ φωτὸς αὐτῶν ἅπαντα εἶναι δοκεῖ μέλανα διὰ τὸ σκότος,
For these too seem to be black when they have depth, because the rays are reflected altogether sparsely; for all the intermediate parts of their light seem to be black because of the darkness.
§1.7Ὄτι δὲ τὸ σκότος οὐ χρῶμα ἀλλὰ στέρησίς ἐστι φωτός, οὐ χαλεπὸν ἐξ ἄλλων τε πολλῶν καταμαθεῖν, καὶ μάλστα ἐκ τοῦ μηδὲ αἰσθητὸν εἶναι τὸ πηλίκον καὶ ποῖόν τι τῷ σχήματι τετύχηκεν ὂν τὸ σκότος, καθάπερ ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὁρατῶν.
That darkness is not a color but a privation of light is not difficult to learn from many other things, and especially from the fact that it is not even perceptible how large or of what shape darkness happens to be, as is the case with other visible things.
§1.8Τὸ δὲ φῶς ὅτι πυρός ἐστι χρῶμα, δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ μηδεμίαν ἄλλην ἢ ταύτην ἔχον εὑρίσκεσθαι χρόαν, καὶ διὰ τὸ μόνον τοῦτο δι᾽ ἑαυτοῦ ὁρατὸν γίνεσθαι, τὰ δ᾽ ἄλλα διὰ τούτου.
That light is the color of fire is clear from its being found to have no other color than this, and because this alone is visible through itself, while other things are visible through this.
Ἐπισκεπτέον δὲ τοῦτο, Ἐνια γὰρ οὐκ ὄντα πῦρ οὐδὲ πυρὸς εἴδη τὴν φύσιν φῶς ποιεῖν φαίνεται.
But we must investigate this, for some things which are not fire nor by nature kinds of fire appear to produce light.
§1.9Εἰ μὴ ἄρα τὸ μὲν τοῦ πυρὸς χρῶμα φῶς ἐστίν, οὐ μέντοι καὶ τὸ φῶς πυρός ἐστι χρῶμα μόνου, ἀλλ᾽ ἐνδέχεται μὴ μόνῳ μὲν ὑπάρχειν τῷ πυρὶ τὴν χρόαν ταύτην, εἶναι μέντοι χρῶμα τὸ φῶς αὐτοῦ.
Unless indeed, while the color of fire is light, yet light is not the color of fire alone, but it is possible that this color does not belong to fire alone, yet light is its color.
Οὐδενὶ γοῦν ἄλλῳ τὴν ὅρασιν αὐτοῦ συμβαίνει γίνεσθαι πλὴν τῷ φωτί, καθάπερ καὶ τὴν τῶν ἄλλων σωμάτων ἁπάντων τῇ τοῦ σώματος φαντασίᾳ.
At any rate, its vision happens to occur by no other thing than light, just as the vision of all other bodies occurs by the appearance of the body.
§1.10Τὸ δὲ μέλαν χρῶμα συμβαίνει γίνεσθαι, ὅταν ὁ ἀὴρ καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς διακαυθῇ, διὸ καὶ πάντα τὰ καόμενα μελαίνεται, καθάπερ ξύλα καὶ ἄνθρακες σβεσθέντος τοῦ πυρός, καὶ ὁ ἐκ τοῦ κεράμου καπνὸς ἐκκρινομένου τοῦ ἐνυπάρχοντος ἐν τῷ κεράμῳ ὑγροῦ καὶ καομένου.
Black color happens to occur when air and water are thoroughly burnt by fire; wherefore all things that are burned turn black, just as wood and charcoal when the fire is extinguished, and the smoke from pottery when the moisture existing in the clay is separated and burned.
§1.11Διὸ καὶ τοῦ καπνοῦ γίνεται μελάνπὸντατος ὁ ἀπὸ τῶν πιόνων καὶ λιπαρῶν, οἷον ἐλαίου καὶ πίττης καὶ δᾳδός, διὰ τὸ μάλιστα ταῦτα κάεσθαι καὶ συνέχειαν ποιεῖν.
Therefore also the smoke becomes the blackest from rich and oily substances, such as oil, pitch, and torchwood, because these burn most of all and produce a continuous smoke.
Μέλανα δὲ καὶ ταῦτα γίνεται, δι᾽ ὅσων ῥεῖ τὸ ὕδωρ, ὅταν βρυωθέντων πρῶτον ἀναξηρανθῇ τὸ ὑγρόν, καθάπερ καὶ τὰ ἐν τοῖς τοίχοις κονιάματα.
These also become black, through which water flows, when, after they have grown mossy, the moisture is first dried up, just like the plaster on walls.
§1.12Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ οἱ καθ᾽ ὕδατος λίθοι· καὶ γὰρ οὗτοι βρυωθέντες, ὕστερον ἀποξηραινόμενοι τῷ χρώματι γίνονται μέλανες.
Similarly the stones under water; for these too, having grown mossy, and afterwards being dried up, become black in color.
Τὰ μὲν οὖν ἁπλᾶ τῶν χρωμάτων ταῦτα καὶ τοσαῦτά ἐστιν.
These, then, are the simple colors, and they are of this number.