A little history of red and purple natural dyes:https://blog.patra.com/20...tural-and-synthetic-dyes/
Tyrian purple: the most expensive dye in the world
The most well-known shellfish dye was the Tyrian purple, royal purple or imperial purple as it was called, which came from sea snails in the Eastern Mediterranean in the ancient city of Tyre. This dye was very special for all the civilisations around the Mediterranean and its use spanned whole centuries. It was the most expensive dye in the whole of ancient world, as the colour it produced was very bright and colourfast. Because of its properties, its use was restricted for royals, members of the royal family, and senior public officers and priests.
Archaeological evidence points out that the ancient Phoenicians first discovered and used it (Tyre was an important Phoenician city). From them, it became known to ancient Greeks, Romans and through them in Byzantium and Medieval Europe. It was so sought after that the Byzantine emperor Theodosius I prohibited its use from the lower classes or the penalty was death. The privilege of using this purple dye is so profound that the phrase “born in purple” was born in that period. In Western Europe, it was replaced in prominence around the 12th century, and finally went out of fashion around the 19th century, when a synthetic purple was invented and thus it became more accessible to the wider masses.
For red dye:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochineal
The cochineal (/ˌkɒtʃɪˈniːl/ KOTCH-ih-NEEL, /ˈkɒtʃɪniːl/ KOTCH-ih-neel; Dactylopius coccus) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America through North America (Mexico and the Southwest United States), this insect lives on cacti in the genus Opuntia, feeding on plant moisture and nutrients. The insects are found on the pads of prickly pear cacti, collected by brushing them off the plants, and dried.
Cochineal dye was used by the Aztec and Maya peoples of North and Central America as early as the second century BC. Eleven cities conquered by Montezuma in the 15th century paid a yearly tribute of 2000 decorated cotton blankets and 40 bags of cochineal dye each. Production of cochineal is depicted in Codex Osuna. During the colonial period, the production of cochineal (grana fina) grew rapidly. Produced almost exclusively in Oaxaca by indigenous producers, cochineal became Mexico's second-most valued export after silver. Soon after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, it began to be exported to Spain, and by the 17th century was a commodity traded as far away as India.[
The dyestuff was consumed throughout Europe and was so highly prized, its price was regularly quoted on the London and Amsterdam Commodity Exchanges (with the latter one beginning to record it in 1589).
On the same subject:https://www.bbc.com/cultu...t-that-painted-europe-red
A brief description of what the rest of the population wore from the Patra blog:
Natural dyes in antiquity and modern times
The dyes that were used for garments were proportionate to the wealth or importance of the people. Wealthy people were wearing brightly hued colours, while the lower class was wearing clothes in the shades of white or brown. The slaves’ clothes were dyed in greys, greens and browns. Either way, dyed garments were expensive and a matter of exclusivity, across the whole ancient world.
Ancient and present day natural dyes come from three sources, mineral, animal and vegetable. The strength of the color you get depends not only on the dye source, but what is in the water you use for the dye bath and on the mordant or fixative you use to set the dye.
if you've ever visited Monument Valley/the Navajo Reservation and had your eyes bug out at the price of a Navajo rug done the in the manner passed down through the ages- not only does the weaver raise, shear, clean, comb and spin the wool (on a spindle) themselves, but the wool is hand dyed from plants they collect themselves. Many won't reveal the sources for a dye, but will share the dye plants they have collected with other weavers. You never pass through a Navajo loom when empty, and there is a small mistake left in each one.
Back to our regularly scheduled topic now . . .