Tempera is the name of the primary type of
paint and associated techniques in art, before
oil painting overtook it in the
16th century. Egg yolks,
honey,
milk (in the form of
casein) and also a variety of plant gums were used as binding agents. The techniques of tempera painting can be exacting when used with traditional techniques that require the application of numerous small brushstrokes applied in a cross-hatching technique. The colors, which are painted over each other, resemble a
pastel when unvarnished, or the deeper colors when varnished.