NOTE: Due to the rarity of the pigment, we produce this watercolor on demand and ship it within 10–12 days of the order.

NV1

Transparent

Lightfastness: 6/8

 

A watercolor based on genuine Tyrian purple, fixed onto an ancient clay base following the *Purpurissum* recipe described by Pliny in his Naturalis Historia

Tyrian purple is the most mysterious, precious, and coveted of colors. It was extracted from a mollusk—the murex—which yields a dye ranging in shade from crimson to violet. The immense number of murex snails required to obtain just a few grams of purple, combined with the laborious extraction process, made it more valuable than gold; consequently, purple-dyed fabrics became the ultimate symbol of luxury, royalty, and power. While the Phoenicians were its greatest producers and traders, no one yearned it more avidly than the ancient Romans. It strictly defined the social status of the patricians who wore it. During the Imperial era, dressing entirely in purple was a privilege reserved solely for emperors.

Legend has it that this was the fate of King Ptolemy of Mauretania, guilty of publicly displaying a purple cloak so magnificent that it overshadowed the Emperor Caligula; wounded in his pride, Caligula had him arrested and put to death.

Tyrian purple possessed—and still possesses—unique properties. Unlike other colors of animal or vegetable origin, which would fade or wash out in the sun, purple actually intensified, appearing more brilliant and almost iridescent in the light. This effect stems from a specific chemical photoreactivity that causes the color to shift from deep reddish tones to a violet-blue, giving the fabric the illusion of magical changeability.

History and legend, myths and tales all surround this color, which was lost with the advent of the Middle Ages. An art rediscovered and preserved today by a few artisan dyers around the world.