Dye: Did you mean...?

The Wise Man of Chief Mountain is an origin story of the Blackfeet nation explaining how they came to wear brightly colored clothing. Although Native American nations generally wore clothing dyed different colors, the Blackfeet were famous...

An inscription on an Egyptian papyrus dating from the 2nd century CE relates that the goddess Isis, bestowing gifts on humanity at the beginning of time, gave as much power and honor to women as she did to men. This brief passage reflects...

Traditional Lebanese handicrafts are considered to be a major sector of the living cultural heritage in the rural areas of Lebanon. Transmitted from one generation to another, traditional rural Lebanese handicrafts have been able to persist...

The Ulunsuti tales of the Cherokee deal with the mystical jewel, the Ulunsuti ("transparent"), a diamond on the forehead of the great horned serpent Uktena. The Ulunsuti appears in several Cherokee legends, but the story is developed through...

Certain materials have always been precious such as gold for its lustre, incorruptibility, and ease to work but some ancient cultures often gave a very high value to more unusual materials. The Romans loved Tyrian purple dye, the Incas prized...

The Phoenician expansion between the 11th and 6th centuries BCE grew out of the maritime cities of the Levant—most notably Tyre, Sidon, and Byblos, whose skilled sailors and merchants created one of the ancient Mediterranean’s most dynamic...

Bison skulls piled at Michigan Carbon Works in Rougeville, outside of Detroit, Michigan, USA, 1892. The bones were processed for various commodities such as glue, dye, and fertilizer. Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library...

Examples of the Murex haustellum brandaris shellfish, one of the sources of Tyrian purple dye.

An 1894 illustration showing the uniform of a Grenadier, 40th Foot regiment, 1767. The soldier is wearing his famous "red coat" made with cochineal dye. From R. H. Raymond Smythies (1894). Historical Records of the 40th (2nd Somersetshire...

An 18th-century illustration showing a Mesoamerican using the traditional method of collecting insects to make the prized cochineal dye. (The Newberry Library)