Dye History from 2600 BC to the 20th Century

by Susan C. Druding
Originally written for a Seminar presented in Seattle, ashington at Con!ergen"e #$%2, 2600 BC &arliest written re"ord of the use of dyestuffs in China '#( BC ool dyeing established as "raft in )ome

**# BC +le,ander finds #$0 year old purple robes when he "on-uers Susa, the .ersian "apital. /hey were in the royal treasury and said to be worth 06 million 1e-ui!alent2 *2' BC +le,ander the 3reat mentions 4beautiful printed "ottons4 in 5ndia 2*6 BC +n &gyptian papyrus mentions dyers as 4stin6ing of fish, with tired eyes and hands wor6ing un"easingly (( BC )omans found painted people 4pi"ti4 in 3aul dyeing themsel!es with oad 1same "hemi"al "ontent of "olor as indigo2 27D and *)D Centuries +D )oman gra!es found with madder and indigo dyed te,tiles, repla"ing the old 5mperial .urple 1purpura2 *rd Century papyrus found in a gra!e "ontains the oldest dye re"ipe 6nown, for imitation purple 8 "alled Sto"6holm .apyrus. 5t is a 3ree6 wor6. 2'* +D &mperor +urelian refused to let his wife buy a purpura8dyed sil6 garment. 5t "ost its weight in gold. 9ate :/H Century &mperor /heodosium of By;antium issued a de"ree forbidding the use of "ertain shades of

purple e,"ept by the 5mperial family on pain of death

:00 +D <ure, 1the mollus6 from whi"h purpura "omes2 be"oming s"ar"e due to huge demand and o!er har!esting for )omans. One pound of "loth dyed with <ure, worth 020,000 in terms of our money today 1&mperor +ugustus sour"e2 '00=s a Chinese manus"ript mentions dyeing with wa, resist te"hni-ue 1bati62 $2( the ool Dyers= 3uilds first initiated in 3ermany

##%% the first mention of 3uilds for Dyers in 9ondon ##$' >ing ?ohn 1of <agna Carta fame2 persuaded .arliament to regulate dyeing of woolens to prote"t the publi" from poor -uality goods #200=s )u"ellia, of @loren"e, redis"o!ered the an"ient art of ma6ing purple dye from li"hens sent from +sia <inor 1similar to Or"hilsA2 #2#2 the "ity of @loren"e had o!er 200 dyers, fullers and tailors. + dire"tory of wea!ers and spinners was published as well. #2$0 the only blue dye of the period, oad, began to be raised e,tensi!ely in 3ermany. /he * maBor dyes were nowC woad, madder and weld. #*2# Bra;ilwood was first mentioned as a dye, sour"e from &ast 5ndies and 5ndia. 1the "ountry of Bra;il was named for the wood found there, not !i"e !ersa2 #*2'8#*'' &dward 555, 4)oyal ool <er"hant4 offered prote"tion to all foreigners li!ing in &ngland and to all who wanted to "ome to help impro!e the te,tile industry. &arly #(th Century Cennino Cennini of .adua, 5taly des"ribed the printing of "loth 1blo"6 printing2 in his treatise "alled <ethod of .ainting Cloths by <eans of <oulds.

#(th Century +;te"s under <onte;uma "on-uered the <ayans. ## <ayan "ities paid a yearly tribute of 2000 de"orated "otton blan6ets and :0 bags of Co"hineal 1inse"t dye2 ea"h. #:2$ the #st &uropean boo6 on dyeing <ariegola Dell=+rte de /entori was published in 5taly #:6: .ope .aul 55 introdu"ed the so8"alled 4Cardinals= .urple4 whi"h was really s"arlet from the >ermes inse"t. /his be"ame the first lu,ury dye of the <iddle +ges Bust as 5mperial .urple 1<ure,2 had been for the an"ient world. #:'2 &dward 5D in"orporated the Dyers= Company of 9ondon #(0' @ran"e, Holland and 3ermany begin the "ulti!ation of dye plants as an industry #(#$ .i;arro and Corte; find that there is "otton in Central and South +meri"a. /hey send ba"6 brightly printed fabri"s showing that the 5ndians 6new about blo"6 printing prior to the Con-uest. Co"hineal from <e,i"o and .eru now being shipped ba"6 to Spain. #6#: dyeing "loth 4in the wood4 was introdu"ed in &nglandC logwood, fusti", et". #6*0 Drebbel, a Dut"h "hemist, produ"ed a new brilliant red dye from "o"hineal and tin. 5t was used at 3oblein 1.aris2 and the Bow Dyewor6s 1&ngland2 #6*#8** /he &ast 5ndia Co. began importation of "ali"o from Cali"ut, 5ndia to &ngland. +t first they thought the fabri" was linen, not "otton. <id8#600=s &nglish 9ogwood "utters in Honduras lead a dangerous life 1danger from Spaniards, hurri"anes, swamps, disease2 in the Bay of Campea"hy, but "ould get !ery ri"h #6%% ?ames 55, of &ngland, prohibited e,portation of un8 dyed "loth from &ngland to help bolster the home industry

for &nglish dyers o!er that of the S"ottish dyers.

#6%$ the first "ali"o printwor6s was begun in 3ermany at +ugsburg and was later to grow into a large industry #%th Century 8 &nglish dyehouse gets "ontra"t to dye the Bu"6ingham .ala"e 3uards "oats with "o"hineal. /his "ontra"t "ontinued into the 20th Century still using "o"hineal. #'0% illiam 555 signed a law prohibiting the importation of printed sil6s, this only made "ali"os and sil6s more popular #'#6 /here were now more than *0 laws in &ngland prohibiting the importation of "ali"o and "ottonE prints be"ame more popular than e!er. #'2' + method of blea"hing linen with 6elp 1seaweed2 was introdu"ed in S"otland #'** @ly shuttle in!ented by ?ohn >ay, &ngland #':( 5ndigo begins to be grown in &ngland, after the )e!olution when it be"ame "heaper to import from the &ast 5ndies #'66 Dr. Cuthbert 3ordon patents Cudbear 1deri!ed from his mother=s name2 Cuthbert was prepared from a !ariety of li"hens. Only one of 2 natural dyes e!er "redited to an indi!idual 1other is -uer"itron to Ban"roft2 #'6$ +r6wright=s spinning frame in &ngland 1a6a the Spinning ?enny2 #'': Swedish "hemist, S"heele, dis"o!ered "hlorine destroyed !egetable "olors by obser!ing a "or6 in a bottle of hydro"hlori" a"id #'': .russian Blue and Sulphuri" a"id a!ailable "ommer"ially. .russian blue formed from prussite of potash and iron salt 1"opperas2. +"tually one of the early "hemi"al dyes. #''( Ban"roft introdu"ed the use of -uer"itron bar6 as a

natural dye. One of only 2 natural dyes whose dis"o!erer is 6nown, it yields a yellow, brighter than fusti", and is from the inner bar6 of 7o. +meri"an oa6.

#'%6 Bertholet, @ran"e, re"ommended "hlorine water for "ommer"ial blea"hing. Other o,idi;ing agents began to be used, tooC hydrogen pero,ide, sodium pero,ide and sodium perborate. #'%( Bell, &ngland, who had in!ented printing from plates, de!eloped roller printing #'%% .i"ri" a"id a!ailable 1yellow dye and disinfe"tant2 "ould be dyed from a"id dyebath on wool #'$0 +"id dis"harge of mordant printing de!eloped #'$: /hree @ren"hmen set up first "ali"o printing #'$6 /ennant de!eloped blea"hing pro"ess #'$' Ban"roft de!elops a pro"ess for steam fi,ation of prints #'$% Ober6ampf 1in ?ouy, @ran"e2 pleased 7apoleon by showing him a roller printer made from a "annon 7apoleon had sei;ed from the .ope. /his began the famous /oiles de ?ouy produ"tion. #%02 Sir )obert .eel brought out a resist method, he had pur"hased the idea for from a "ommer"ial tra!eller for e-ui!alent of 02(. 5t "onsisted of a wa, or other resist on the ba"6ground, a"tually a bati6 te"hni-ue done on large s"ale. #%2* <er"er dis"o!ered "hromate dis"harge of indigo #%2( <athias Baldwin 1later of lo"omoti!e fame2 began the first +meri"an produ"tion of engra!ed metal rollers for "ali"o printing whi"h were used in the .hiladelphia area and "ould produ"e *00 yds of fabri" per day. #%*: )unge, a 3erman "hemist, noti"ed that upon distilling "oal tar, aniline would gi!e a bright blue "olor if treated

with blea"hing powder. /his helped to pa!e the way to the de!elopment of aniline 1basi"2 dyes 22 years later.

#%:: ?ohn <er"er dis"o!ered that treating "otton with "austi" soda 1lye2 while under tension impro!ed its strength, luster, dyeability, absorben"y. /he pro"ess was "alled 4mer"eri;ation4. #%(6 illiam Henry .er6in dis"o!ered the first syntheti" dye stuff 4<au!e4 1aniline, a basi" dye2 while sear"hing for a "ure for malaria and a new industry was begun. 5t was a brilliant fu"hsia type "olor, but faded easily so our idea of the "olor mau!e is not what the appearan"e of the original "olor was. #%(% 3riess dis"o!ered dia;otisation and "oupling onFin the fiber #%(%8($ <agenta 1fu"hsin2 dis"o!ered by Derguin the 2nd basi" dye and more widely used than <au!e #%6# <ethyl !iolet, basi" dye, by 9auth #%62 Hofmann=s Diolet, Hofmann was one of the great dye "hemists of all time #%62 Bismar"6 Brown de!eloped by <artius and 9ightfoot, first soluble a;o dye #%6* +niline Bla"6, de!eloped by 9ightfoot, a bla"6 produ"ed by o,idation of aniline on the "otton fiber. #%66 <ethyl Diolet, basi" dye #%6% 3raebe and 9iebermann, 3erman "hemists, produ"ed ali;arin 1syntheti" madder2. this was the first time a syntheti" substitute for a !egetable dye had been manufa"tured. .H..er6in also synthesi;ed it about the same time, but independently. #%'2 <ethyl 3reen by 9auth and Baubigny, still in use, basi" dye #%'* Ca"hou de 9a!al, #st sulphur dye, a brown, by

3roissant and Bretonniere, @ran"e

#%'(8'6 Caro and itt prepared Chrysoidine, #st important member of a;o "lass of dye #%'6 Caro, an important dye "hemist, dis"o!ered <ethyl Blue, an important #%'' <ala"hite 3reen, basi" dye by Dobner and @isher #%'% Biebri"h S"arlet in!ented, a !ery pure red a"id dye, ri!alling "o"hineal in brightness #%'% !on Baeyer synthesi;ed syntheti" indigo. 5t was not mar6eted until #%$' #%%0 /homas and Holliday, &ngland, synthesi;ed the first a;o dye formed on the fabri" by "oupling. Da"an"eine red formed by treating fabri" with napthol and then dipping in a dia;oli;ed amine, a !ery fast "ategory of dyes. #%%: Congo )ed by Bottiger, first of the dire"t "otton dyes #%%( Ben;opurpurine, early dire"t dye by Duisberg, bright and highly substanti!e #%%( .ara )ed dye brought out by !on 3allois and Gllri"h. 1B napthol and nitraniline2 #%%(8%$ Chardonnet, @ran"e, made the first su""essful rayon and showed it at the .aris &,position of #%%$. #%%' @irst a;o mordant dye, +li;arin Hellow 33 #%%' )hodamine B 1brilliant red8!iolet2 basi" dye #%$0 Dire"t Bla"6 BH, first dire"t bla"6 #%$# Diamine 3reen B, first green a;o dye #%$# Chardonnet built his first "ommer"ial plant at Besan"on for manufa"turing rayon, by the Chardonnet pro"ess. #%$# Dire"t dye8S6y Blue @@, important blue for many

years, good light fastness

#%$* 2nd Sulphur dye, Didal Bla"6 #%$( Dis"ose method of ma6ing rayon in!ented by Cross and Be!an, &ngland was begun. /his is now the most "ommon pro"ess for manufa"ture of rayon. #%$% Dire"t Bla"6 &, a bla"6 dye of maBor importan"e #$00 hen <o;affer ed Din be"ame Shah of .ersia one of his first edi"ts was to prohibit the use of analine dyes for rugs. +ll analine dyes were sei;ed and publi"ly burned. .enalties in"luded Bail and fines e-ual to double the !alue of the mer"handise. #$0# )ene Bohn patented his in!ention of 5ndanthrene Blue )S, the first anthra-uinone !at dye, a "ategory of dyes with e,tremely good fastness to light and washing #$0# Bohn de!eloped 2nd !at dye, @lanthrene a yellow #$02 /hesmar, Baumann, Des"amps, and @rossard brought out hydrosulfite and sulfo,ylateformaldehyde. #$0( /hio8indigo )ed, by @reidlander, #st indigoid dye #$0% Hydron Blue, a ri!al to indigo, de!eloped by Cassella #$#: GS+ importing $0I of its dye stuffs, a problem during 5, as many "ame from 3ermany. #$#( 7eolan dye, #st metalli;ed "hrome dye, dyed from strong a"id bath #$2# Bader de!eloped soluble !at "olors, the 5ndigosols. #$22 the ++/CC 1+meri"an +sso". of /e,tile Chemists and Colorists2 formed its first sub"ommittee to study washfastness of printed and dyed "ottons, formulate testing pro"edures, standards of fastness. #$2: 5ndigosol 0, by Baeyer and Sunder, #st "ommer"ial indigosol dye

#$2% Dupont began the fundamental resear"h that would lead to dis"o!ery of nylon #$*6 @irst pair of sto"6ings 6nit with a new syntheti" fiber from Du.ont "alled 4nylon4 for whi"h Carothers re"ei!ed the patent. #$*% 7ylon formally introdu"ed to the publi" #$:% /e,tiles be"ame se"ond largest industry in GS+. /he a!erage "onsumer "onsumption per "apita of fibersC 2' lbs "otton, 6.* lbs rayon, :.$ lbs wool. #$(# 5rgalan dyes introdu"ed by 3eigy, #st neutral pre8 metalli;ed dyes 1did not re-uire a lot of a"id as 7eolans did2 Cibalans are the same type. #$(0 Dupont introdu"ed first "ommer"ial a!ailability of Orlon, a new a"ryli" 4wool substitute4 #$(# Du.ont announ"ed that a plant in 7.Carolina would begin to manufa"ture Da"ron polyester. #$(# + new a"ryli", +"rilan. was introdu"ed by Chemstrand Corp. #$(* Cibalan Brilliant Hellow *39, a dye whi"h lead the way to dis"o!ery of the fiber rea"ti!e dyes was introdu"ed #$(: Celanese Corp announ"ed first "ommer"ial produ"tion of an +meri"an tria"etate, +rnel. #$(6 5C5 in &ngland introdu"ed .ro"ion, first range of fiber rea"ti!e dye 8 this dye was to ha!e a maBor impa"t on industry as well as te,tile artists around the world 1more here2 #$(6 &astman >oda6 introdu"ed Derel, a modified a"ryli" #$(6 +meri"an Cyanamid introdu"ed a new a"ryli", Creslan #$(6 One person wor6ing out of e!ery ' in the GS+ re"ei!ed his in"ome from wor6 performed in te,tile or

apparel industriesJ

#$(' C5B+ introdu"es Ciba"rons, a new range of rea"ti!e dyes and the first to "ompete with 5C5=s .ro"ion series #$(% &astman >oda6 introdu"ed >odel polyester. #$6: @irst permanent press finishes used #$6% Du.ont introdu"es Kiana, a fan"y nylon with 4sil64 feel and drape #$6% @or the first time manmade fibers topped natural fibers for GS "onsumption. ( billion pounds !s :.6 billion pounds, the use of polyester was growing the most -ui"6ly. #$'0s 9ate in the '0s, C5B+83eigy introdu"ed Ciba"ron @ series 1history here2