cere n.

"waxy, having the texture or color of new wax," 1738, from Latin cera "wax" (see cere (n.)) + -aceous.

late 14c., "white lead; a mixture or compound of hydrate and carbonate of lead, produced by exposing in thin plates to the vapor of vinegar" [Century Dictionary], from Old French ceruse, from Latin cerussa, "white lead." It is perhaps ultimately from a Greek or Latin word meaning "white wax" (see cere.)

The term also was applied generally to white pigments made from other ingredients, as in Trevisa's translation of Bartolomaeus: "Merours beþ y tempered wiþ tyn and white colour þat hatte cerusa. Cerusa is y made of tyn as it is y made of leed."