Fashion Has Always Been to Dye For
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
It is the 12th century BCE. The Bronze Age is collapsing. Drought is plaguing the Eastern Mediterranean, palace economies are disintegrating, and empires are fragmenting under combined political, military, economic, and climatic stresses. Along the Phoenician shores, people are harvesting tens of thousands of predatory sea snails, not to eat, but to collect enough dye to color just the trim of a garment with a color known to the world as Tyrian purple.
This particular dye was extraordinarily valuable. Not only was it extremely labor-intensive to obtain, but also had the rare quality of actually intensifying over time rather than fading. This made it in high demand among the wealthy in spite of the fact that the color wasn’t the only aspect of the dye that never faded; it also retained its signature dead snail stench no matter how much it was washed. It was a dye that would cost you a weighty sum, your olfactory comfort, and, in some cases, your life.
It is in many ways extraordinary that we as a species figured out how to harvest Tyrian purple (and the myriad other dyes we have obtained throughout history), and even more so when you consider that the pursuit of colorful cloth was happening in times when the basic needs for survival were not as accessible as they are in modern times. Every aspect of life, from food cultivation to the building of shelters to laundry, took a significant amount of time and resources, and yet we still devoted laborious focus to the deeply unpleasant harvest of purple snail goo for our clothing.
Tyrian purple is an extreme example of the difficult and unpleasant nature of dyeing fabric, but most traditional dyeing processes required labor to collect materials, and natural dyes were so notoriously noxious that many cities had ordinances that kept them on the outskirts of city limits, much like other smelly services like butchering. Given the expensive and often odious nature of dyeing, it is a wonder we developed it at all.
The earliest known evidence of dyed fibers comes from flax dated from around 34,000 years ago, in a cave with stone tools and animal bones. In contrast, agriculture began developing around 12,000 years ago. Something in human nature has always sought to express ourselves through art and beauty, and the very fact that we pursued that expression before a time when food was secure speaks to the intrinsic importance of creation to our well-being. As we fought for survival, we sought food, shelter, society, security, and art.
So for longer than recorded history, we have been experimenting with adding color to our fabric, seeking more colors and greater stability in the finished product. Not only did people have to figure out what plants, animals, or minerals could be used to extract color and apply it to cloth, we had to learn new methods to get the color to stick to the cloth more permanently. “Mordants” are substances added to the dyeing process that let the dye adhere to fibers and stay more colorfast for longer. For a long time, the primary mordants in use were salt, vinegar, natural alum, and stale urine (which certainly didn’t help the stench problem in the dyeing process). Dyeing became an early impetus for chemistry experimentation.
While we ascribed importance to artistic self-expression through dyes from a very early point in history, not everyone was able to partake. The labor, materials, and unpleasant nature of dyeing translated to expense that was out of many people’s reach, so dyes became a means of separating the economic and social classes in societies. While simple cost factors often made this a natural separation, the privileged classes also took pains to ensure that the distinction was maintained through sumptuary laws.
Sumptuary laws were laws that restricted access to certain goods, including fabrics and fashion accessories, often with the intent to maintain strict social hierarchies regardless of of a person’s ability to afford the luxury good. Tyrian purple was an early target of sumptuary laws; though its expense alone made it out of reach of most people, it was codified into law that only the most senior Roman magistrates were allowed a white toga edged in the dye, while a full purple toga with gold edging was reserved for generals celebrating an official military success. Over time, the restrictions on Tyrian purple tightened until it was the sole privilege of the emperor. It is believed that King Ptolemy of Mauretania’s decision to wear purple when visiting Emperor Caligula was interpreted as an aggressive act and led to his execution.
Sumptuary laws surrounding fashion and dyeing continued in various nations throughout history. Exacting laws were put into place following the Bubonic Plague, which vastly changed the socioeconomic landscape of Europe by giving the diminished population of the peasantry and middle classes more negotiating power for their labor. Seeing the new middle and merchant classes wealthy enough to afford fine clothing stuck in the craw of the nobility, whose wealth and power had taken a major hit during the pandemic. The late 14th century saw an elaborate breakdown of what people were allowed to wear based on their social class and income levels as an artificial means of preserving the illusion of power in the nobility (who were sometimes less wealthy than the merchant classes!).
Advancement in dyeing techniques also contributed to the enactment of controlling laws. In Calicut, Kerala, a state in southwestern India, creators developed a method of printing on durable cotton fabric called calico. This created vibrant and beautiful patterns that did not require the same significant time investment that went into weaving patterned cloth. This made them cheaper and extraordinarily popular with India’s trading partners, but inspired backlash in Britain from weavers, dyers, farmers, and spinners who were seeing their local business heavily impacted by the new cloth’s popularity. This led to a series of bans known as the Calico Acts, meant to block the importation of the cloth until eventually only raw cotton was legal to sell. Sumptuary laws were wrapped up in the Calico Acts in 1700, introducing a two hundred pound penalty for possession or sale of calico.
The import of raw cotton, the exception to the Calico Acts eventually led to the development of processing technologies that resulted in the creation of cotton mills that, once the acts were repealed in the late 18th century, put Britain at the forefront of cotton manufacturing and deeply impacted the Indian markets.
The import humankind has placed on dyes and fashion over the centuries has been a powerful driving force in society. It has led to the success and ruin of different economies and nations, it has shifted power, and has been used as a tool of control. It has also helped develop chemistry and industrial technology, give people a sense of identity, and has clearly been important enough to us to endure all manner of unpleasant experiences in the pursuit of colorful cloth and the means of self-expression. The next time you pick out a colorful outfit that makes you feel good, remember the long and storied history that humankind has lived through to give you that choice, and enjoy the confidence that comes with dressing in dyed or patterned clothing.
Maybe skip the dead snails, though.
There is still a chance to experience our fiber exhibition, By a Thread, before it leaves The Art Center! Come see our collection of colorful contemporary fiber artworks at our closing reception this Saturday from 1:00-3:00 pm. Artist Laura Leiden will be demonstrating the alcohol ink technique she uses in her quiltmaking process (a very modern take on adding color to cloth) and delivering an artist talk. Many of the other artists will also be present to answer any questions you might have about their work. Light refreshments will be served and it’s free and open to the public.
