Here's the web page with photos of the process I used to make cera colla, the wax emulsion paint.
http://www.realcolorwheel.com/ceracolla.htmWax was used it the past to decorate carved statues.
Here I used cara colla on these two guard dogs, carved from dolmite, a soft marble.
The colors stayed with the period, Vermilion, cobalt turquoise and Naples yellow (antimony lead)
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It has been almost 2 years since I painted the Guard Dogs. The paint has not moved at all. This was an excellent choice of media. Naples yellow has stayed very bright as the cobalt turquoise. We are in one of the wettest areas in the US. A darker mold is forming on the vermillion ion the under areas, giving a shadow effect. The paint under the mold is still good to go.
In the past I have decorated the dogs with acrylic and oil paint. Nether had stood up to the weather. Don