Abstract: The present invention is directed to coating compositions of surge arrester electrodes which do not contain any radioactive materials and which permit the surge arrester to operate both in a well-lighted environment and in a dark environment.The coating composition for the electrodes of a surge arrester contains at least some aluminium, titanium and a product of the type MA or M.sup.n+, A.sup.n- in which M represents an alkaline metal, A a sulphate or a carbonate of this metal and n is equal to 1 or 2.The invention has preferred application for the coating of the electrodes of miniature or three element surge arresters.