Researchers Discover Tyrian Purple, the Most Expensive Dye From 3600 Years Ago; 'Can Still Use It for Dying...'

Archaeologists recently discovered what they believe to be evidence of an ancient workshop on a Greek island. The workshop found in Aegina is important because it is suspected to have been the production base for a valuable purple dye used around 3,600 years ago, stated Newsweek. The dye was once so expensive that it cost even more than gold. Findings regarding the workshop were published in the journal PLOS One.

| Photo by Teona Swift)
The dye in question is Tyrian Purple which became a highly prized pigment in the Bronze Age and retained its importance well into the late medieval period, stated CNN. The dye was prevalent amongst ancient Greeks and the Romans, because of its ability to resist fading, something they did not get while using plant dyes. The decline of the Byzantine Empire reduced the influence of the dye and the loss of its recipe slashed any hopes of a resurgence.
Archaeologists were examining the ancient settlement of Kolonna in Greece when they found two 16th-century B.C. buildings, stated Newsweek. The buildings grabbed their attention because the structures had collapsed on each other.
According to the study, researchers during the excavation of these two early Mycenaean buildings in Aegina found several pottery fragments. These fragments were noteworthy because they contained residue of 3,600-year-old Tyrian Purple dye.
On analysis, experts found that the dye was so well-preserved that it could still be used on present-day textiles. "The remains of the pigments are still of high quality. You could still use it for dying after 3,600 years," said study lead author Lydia Berger with Paris Lodron University of Salzburg in Austria, according to Newsweek.
Along with the fragments, archaeologists discovered crushed mollusk shells and various stone tools. They speculate that the shells and tools were somehow related to the production process of the dye. The discovery of fragments, dye, ingredients, and tools made researchers conclude that the establishment functioned as a workshop.
Researchers believe that the recipe got lost because of secrecy on the part of manufacturers and a lack of archaeological evidence from the Greek Bronze Age civilizations near the Aegean Sea, stated CNN. Researchers never gave up, and after a lot of effort managed to draw some assumptions about the production methodology. "It was a process that was made by trial and error, and these people really knew the secret. Now we have lost all the secrets," said Maria Melo, an associate professor in the Department of Conservation and Restoration at Nova University of Lisbon, Portugal, who was not involved with the discovery. "Most likely, we will not be able to reproduce their process, but we can try to do something similar."
Researchers consider the discovery to be significant because before the findings at Aegina, the Tyrian Purple had never been found in such an exceptional condition, stated Newsweek. The excavation also produced the bones of several young mammals—mainly piglets and lambs. Researchers are yet to understand the connection of these remains with dye production.