The chicken and the ink

[bi3mw]

I was wondering what exactly of the egg is actually used to make glair. It is not the beaten egg white but the liquid egg white that forms on the bottom of the container after a few hours. As I understand it, beating the egg white breaks down the proteins ( denaturation ). That probably has a negative impact on any analysis although the primary biochemical structure remains unchanged.

.... until the later Middle Ages manuscript miniatures were mainly painted using glair. Glair was made from the egg white, presumably the ones that were left over from painting wood panels with egg yolk. The proteins of egg white must be broken down by beating to make a runny substance for mixing paint.

Here is a short video on how glair is made:

If egg whites are beaten until they are stiff, they are fully denatured and have no elasticity; they lose their original properties and aren't able to return to their former state. If egg whites are beaten only until they form soft peaks, the proteins are only partially denatured and retain some of their elasticity.

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