X-RAY-ABSORPTION TOWARD THE RED QUASAR 3C-212

A ROSAT X-ray spectrum of the z = 1.049 ''red quasar'' 3C 212 has a st rong low-energy cutoff. The spectrum can be fitted with a power law (o f energy index 1.4(-0.6)+0.8) with low-energy photoelectric absorption in excess of the Galactic value that, if at the redshift of the quasa r, would have a column density of (0.9(-0.6)+0.8) x 10(22) atoms cm-2. Possible sites for the absorption are a nuclear torus, an intervening damped Lyman-alpha system, or intracluster material (e.g., a cooling flow) around the quasar. The implied absorbing column density is suffi cient to redden a normal quasar spectrum to the observed steep optical slope. The observed continuum, if dereddened by this amount, can prod uce the observed emission line fluxes and ratios. The absence of the g raphite lambda2175 feature in 3C 212 however, requires dust different from the local Milky Way composition, or an intervening absorber with z < 0.4. Alternative acceptable fits to the X-ray spectrum are (1) a b lackbody with a temperature of 0.7 keV (in the quasar frame) modified only by Galactic absorption, and (2) an optically thin thermal plasma with excess absorption. Although a blackbody spectrum would be unprece dented, the model is consistent with all the available X-ray and optic al data and cannot be ruled out. We discuss possible observations that can discriminate among the above models.