Red is the most common. It was symbolic of life, good luck, and virtue. Black is the color next most often used, but much less common than red. Many black pictographs are smaller, more delicately executed, and appear to be older than the red designs at sites where both colors are present. Evidently, two main mineral pigments were commonly used in mixing the paints.
Pure hematite is a deep red and pure limonite is normally deep yellow.
Under some circumstances, limonite can be black. Various shades of yellow, brown and red result when limonite and hematite are mixed with each other and with clay. Charcoal, black carbon or soot black earth and an unidentified black exudate from rock crevices could also have been the pigment used. White paint was made from burned bone, white clay or gypsum. Deposits of red ochre or red clay are readily available, for instance at the red cliffs of Tulameen.