Purple-dye workshop found in Greece

[guy]

 

The color purple has long been a symbol of power and wealth in ancient civilizations (see post below). Recently, a purple-dye production workshop was unearthed on the Greek island of Aegina, dating back to the second millennium BCE.

 

In ancient times, the color purple symbolized wealth, power, and royalty, largely due to Tyrian purple dye, produced by the Phoenicians in the city of Tyre during the Bronze Age. This dye was extracted from the secretions of mollusks like the spiny dye-murex and the banded dye-murex, found in the eastern Mediterranean and off Morocco's coast. The production process was laborious and complex, requiring up to 12,000 mollusks for just one gram of dye. The recipe was a closely guarded secret, involving the salting and fermenting of the snails' mucous for three days, followed by cooking in pots made of lead or tin. Owing to its costly and intricate production, the dye was exclusively used by the most affluent, such as royalty, priests, and nobility.

 

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The presence of the workshop is inferred from three main lines of evidence: purple pigment preserved on ceramic fragments, which are likely remnants of dye containers; dyeing tools, including grinding stones and a waste pit; and crushed shells of marine snails whose bodies are harvested for these pigments.

 

https://www.sci.news/archaeology/purple-dye-workshop-greek-island-aegina-13015.html

 

 

 

 

Edited June 15 by guy

[guy]

 

This technical article discusses the discovery of what is believed to be Tyrian purple on the island of Aegina (shown above). The findings have led researchers to believe that a purple dye production workshop was on the island.

Chemical studies on the die remnants support the theory that this pigment was derived from snails, not plants. This would support the idea that similar to Tyrian die, the pigment was derived from snails and not from plants.

 

The discovery of almost 2000 shells from the Hexaplex genus, the source of Tyrian dye, further confirms the theory that this was a workshop for producing Tyrian dye.

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Although IND and its isomer indirubin (INR) can originate from plant dyes, the researchers found no INR in the pigment samples. This, combined with the presence of DBI, which is considered a strong identifying marker for Tyrian purple, led the authors to conclude that the excavated dye is indeed of gastropod origin. Furthermore, the high MBI and lower DBI content of the pigment suggests that the purple dye produced at Cape Kolonna was almost exclusively made from the banded dye murex.

Of the 2364 gastropod shell samples found and identified, 84% belonged to the Hexaplex genus. The researchers hypothesise that the other species represent either accidental additions to the snail catch, or snails used for food rather than dye production. While not certain, the team believes that the high homogeneity of the snail species present could indicate that they were hand harvested, as opposed to caught via baited traps.

 

 

 

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/colourant-chemistry-identifies-ancient-greek-workshop-for-tyrian-purple/4019652.article

 

 

Archaeologists Find 3,600-Year-Old Site Making Ancient World's Prized Color (msn.com)

 

Edited June 15 by guy