Coatings of metal phosphates on metals or glass

A coated glass article comprising a glass substrate and a coating thereon which has a thickness of 0.01 to 5 microns and is transparent to visible light but ultra-violet light absorbing, said coating being identifiable as the dried residue of a liquid coating composition containing an organic component and a solution of a metal phosphate compound wherein the metal of the compound is selected from the group consisting of iron, titanium, a mixture of iron and titanium and a mixture of iron and chromium, and wherein the phosphate of the compound is an oxyacid of phosphorus, or a compound capable of forming such an oxyacid in the solution of the said compound, the oxyacid being an ortho- or meta-acid of the structure (1) ##STR5## where X.sup.1 and X.sup.2 are the same or different and are selected from hydrogen, hydroxyl, halide or which may have the structure (2) to provide pyrophosphoric acid ##STR6##