Copper(II) carbonate (often called copper carbonate or cupric carbonate) is a blue-green compound (chemical formula CuCO3) forming most of the patina one sees on weathered brass, bronze, and copper. The color can vary from bright blue to green, because there may be a mixture of both copper carbonate and basic copper carbonate in various stages of hydration. It was formerly much used as a pigment, and is still in use for artist's colours.
It is also been used in some types of make-up, like lipstick etc...It can also be extremely poisonous to humans.
Basic copper(II) carbonate occurs naturally as malachite (CuCO3.Cu(OH)2) and azurite (Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2).
Copper was associated with the goddess Aphrodite/Venus in mythology and alchemy, owing to its lustrous beauty, its ancient use in producing mirrors, and its association with Cyprus, which was sacred to the goddess.
Copper is found in a variety of enzymes, including the copper centers of cytochrome c oxidase, the Cu-Zn containing enzyme superoxide dismutase, and is the central metal in the oxygen carrying pigment hemocyanin.
Copper doorknobs are used by hospitals to reduce the transfer of disease, and Legionnaire's Disease is supressed by copper tubing in air-conditioning systems.
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