The Color of Society: A History of Textile Dyes

This paper will examine how textile dyes have been linked to cultural status and hierarchy throughout history. The colors of clothing have long served as outward expressions of wealth and power due to the rarity of natural dyes. With a limited range of colors, each hue became symbolic and took on specific meanings. In China, a strict color code was enforced, with the emperor wearing the most important color; in the Byzantine Empire tyrian purple became the hallmark of royalty and power. Beginning in the 15th century, colonization opened up extensive trade routes that introduced American cochineal and created a global market for dyes as a luxury product. Dyes became more accessible after the Industrial Revolution, and their appeal became linked to trends and styles rather than rarity or price. The invention of synthetic mauve revolutionized the dye industry and transformed dyes into the common product they are today. Throughout history clothing dyes have taken on many meanings, and although those meanings have changed with time, they continue to hold cultural significance. Part of the panel: Picturesque and ProblematicModerator: Professor Jennifer Tappan