logo
logo
Sign in

The History of Fabric Dyeing

avatar
ikikailifestyle
The History of Fabric Dyeing

Dyes are an integral component of fashion in current times. It may be difficult to imagine a wardrobe restricted solely to one colour over the rest. This was a reality for the human beings of the past as well!

Fabric dyeing is now a key component of a number of businesses across the global economy. The use of dyes plays more than just the role of adding colours to life. There are industries that often use dyes to minimize any overhead costs and maximize the use and selling of existing business materials.

Dyes are revolutionary in their use, primarily because of the colour they impart to all fabrics in the market. Be it at home or the workplace, wearing fabrics dyed colours of your choice can have a significant impact on your mood and sense of self!

Pondering over the use of fabric dyes may bring you to the question - how did fabric dyeing come to be?

 

Fabric Dyeing - Back in Time


Evidence of fabric dyeing has been traced back to as early as the New Stone Age or Neolithic Period, estimated around 10, 200 BCE. Red, yellow and black pigments were found in cave paintings traced back to 15, 000 BCE. Dyes were also used significantly during the period of 7200 to 2000 BCE when fixed settlements were being developed.

Another line of study and research reveals evidence of fabrics and dyes found in Egyptian tombs as old as 4000 years and more.

In the distant past, human beings were just beginning to explore the advantages of fabrics like cotton, linen and wool, over furs and loincloths. These included better protection against natural elements and the ability to dress according to body heat.

The first clothes made of cotton and linseed did not seem to require dyeing. All of the garments were used in their natural colours of white or pale grey. The first evidence of dyeing, however, emerged when civilizations were flourishing in the Middle East, Egypt and Asia.

With the growing domestication of the caveman, there came about a need to distinguish individuals on the basis of their status, gender, class and allegiance. As a result, experimentation with natural dyes came into being.

The dyes used for garments were proportionate to the importance and wealth of the people wearing them. For instance, wealthy and renowned individuals wore bright colours, while the lower class wore clothes in the shades of brown and white. The clothes of slaves on the other hand were dyed in muted greys, browns and greens.

An important source of information that documented the development of the fabric dyeing industry between the Hellenistic and Roman periods is the Stockholm Papyrus.

 

The Kinds of Natural Dyes Used


The dyes used in the past were originally derived from natural sources such as vegetables, trees, herbs, animals and insects. The dependence of civilization on natural dyes continued until the late 1850s.

1.Vegetable Dyes 


Vegetable dyes were primarily created from the roots, bark and leaves of different plants and trees. They were commonly used because of the ease of access and the fast process of development and application to fabrics.

Some of the most common vegetable dyes that were created included indigo for blueish purple and blue, safflower and saffron for yellow and madder for red.

 

2. Animal/Insect Dyes


Another important source of natural vegetable dyes was lichens, which were native to North America. Lichens produced a yellow dye when boiled in water. Another type of dye named orchil dye was used in place of Tyrian purple, which was a much more expensive dye.

In addition to lichens, some of the most popularly used insects for dyes included kermes for scarlet and cochineal for crimson red. The hue of the dyes extracted from these insects was so renowned that the same names are currently used to describe the shades.

 

3. Mineral Dyes


Mineral dyes were among the popularly used dyes that came from the Earth’s surface and were found in mines. The minerals used included lazurite for blue, limonite for yellow and hematite for red.

These rocks were selected and the surface was scratched to create a powder. The powder was dissolved in oil or water, creating a dye that could be used on any fabric. Given the inorganic nature of these dyes, the colours did not degrade over time, unlike the plant and animal dyes.

 

The Color of Royalty - Tyrian Purple  


In the ancient world, there was one specific dye that was valued considerably over the others. This dye was called Tyrian purple and continues to be known as the “colour of royalty” to date.

Tyrian purple was a dye that could only be created from the mucosal secretions of the Murex sea snails, a particular species in the Eastern Mediterranean. The dye was rich in its shade and extremely rare because one Murex could only produce a few drops of the dye. Additionally, the Murex would have to be freshly caught before extracting its secretions.

As a result, Tyrian purple was recognized as the most expensive dye of the ancient world.

 

How Were Fabrics Dyed?


The historical dyeing of fabrics included adding the dye and the textile into a pot of water. The pot of water was then heated and stirred until the colour transferred evenly on the fabric.

An aspect that had to be taken into consideration for natural dyes, however, was that the colours required the use of mordants to bind the dye to the fibre. The fabrics that required mordants included textiles made of protein and cellulose.

Historic records of the fabric dyeing process of the past revealed that there were a number of different mordanting techniques that allowed colours to bind easily to the fibres.

 

Synthetic Dyes


From the 1850s onwards, the use of natural dyes began slowly declining, leading to the emergence of synthetic hues.

A primary reason for this change was the advent of the Industrial Revolution, which increased the demand for cost-effective, easy-to-apply and readily available dyes.

Additionally, there were studies being conducted on the use of coal and tar. These laid the foundation for a significant rise in synthetic dye use. Research and development allowed the population to discover useful dyes yielded from coal and tar. As many as 50 different compounds were isolated from these materials by the year 1900, most of which were in great demand in the German chemical industry. The synthetic dye industry was thus firmly established in 1914 in Germany.

 

Key Takeaways


Fabric dyeing has been a significant contributor to the growing civilization of the ancient world. The population began recognizing the benefits of different fabrics over fur. As a result, a need soon came to be for the use of garments to indicate the status of individuals in the community.

A number of different dyes have been recorded as being in use until the establishment of the synthetic dye industry in Germany in 1914.

With Ikikai, we aim to highlight the talents and skills of artists from micro-enterprises and NGOs, contributing significantly to social change. If this rich and colourful history of fabric dyeing has you intrigued, make a purchase of traditional and brightly-hued stoles, scarves and sarees from www.ikikai.co!

collect
0
avatar
ikikailifestyle
guide
Zupyak is the world’s largest content marketing community, with over 400 000 members and 3 million articles. Explore and get your content discovered.
Read more