"The fast, non-fading dye was an item of luxury trade. It is believed that the intensity of the purple hue improved, rather than faded, as the dyed cloth aged."

"Archaeological data from Tyre indicate that the snails were collected in large vats and left to decompose. This produced a hideous stench that was actually mentioned by ancient authors. Not much is known about the subsequent steps, and the actual ancient method for mass-producing the two murex dyes has not yet been successfully reconstructed; this special "blackish clotted blood" colour, which was prized above all others, is believed to be achieved by double-dipping the cloth, once in the indigo dye of H. trunculus and once in the purple-red dye of M. brandaris."

The Phoenician dolls are unrelated to Tyrian purple, I thought it was an interesting addition to the clip.

Great clip Alan.
I love this stuff

You are a total encylopedia Alan. With all you know, how do you manage to decide on what you want to make a clip of?

I have a little background in pigments and printing inks from a job I had a few years ago, which is part of my enthusiasm for colors. We made reds, yellows, blue, and orange (you can't imagine how many different types of yellows are manufactured; red is really expensive to make). The guy who was in charge of the blue room looked liked Papa Smurf most of the day. Now I write marketing newsletters for commercial printers. A lot of the material is color-related. It's just me and one other guy; we work just a few hours a week, which leaves me plenty of time to surf the net, which is what I love the most (and clipmarks)

Great clip. I'd heard something of this before but nothing like the detail here.

Fascinating clip, alan. I love amethyst!

Nice work if you can get it, Alan - and all praise to you for using your time to bring so much enjoyment to so many people.

I knew about the snails, but really appreciated all the photos you assembled. I'm a fan!

There's a New Testament story about one of the first female leaders of the early church, (Lydia, I think) - and it specifically mentions that she made or dealt in purple cloth - i don't know the reference but I think its interesting that special mention was made of the colour...

Check this out:
Millennia of Murex

http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200604/millennia.of.murex.htm

Another great site.
Thanks RucRazy

nice

Superb as always! But Alan how do they create the color sapphire? Please unleash your wisdom upon us ohhh Great Color Genie Alan!

LOL meancookie, sapphire is way beyond my knowledge spectrum of color. I would have to refer you to a color guru with much better credentials than me.