The Minoan Origin of Tyrian Purple
Author(s): Robert R. Stieglitz
Reviewed work(s):
Source: The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 57, No. 1 (Mar., 1994), pp. 46-54
Published by: The American Schools of Oriental Research
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3210395 .
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The
Minoan
Origin
of Tyrian
Purple
By Robert R. Stieglltz
Tyrianpurple,alsoknownas'royalpurple,'wasthemost
expensivedye in the ancientworld qensen1963).Indirectevidenceaboutits valueis providedby Ugaritic
in whichvarioustypesof dyed
textsof the 14thcenturyBCE,
woolensarelistedwith theirprices.Someof thesetextiles
wereevidentlydyed withTyrianpurple,as theirhigherprices
Homerusedthespecialterm
wouldsuggest(Stieglitz1979:19).
to
refer
to thisdye (Odyssey6.53:
haliporphyros,'sea-purple',
in
order
to
306),perhaps
distinguishit frompurple-dyeimiwe know that
tations.By the timeof Diocletian,in 301BCE,
wool dyed with Tyrianpurplewas literallyworthits weight
in gold, as is statedin his EdictonMaximum
Prices24.
was a liquid,
Thebasicrawmaterialforthedye production
obtaineddirectlyfromthe hypobranchial
glandsof Mediterraneanmollusks.Theshellfishutilizedin thisdye manufacL.(=Hexaplex)
andMurex
turewereprimarilyMurextrunculus
haemastoma
L.
brandaris
L.(=Bolinus).
A thirdvariety,Purpura
Each
shellfish
was
used
(=Thais),
producedonly
occasionally.
a few dropsof the precioussecretion,which
was thenboiled
in saltwaterto
createthe dye.
In orderto produceTyrian
purplein commercialquantities,manythousands
of shellfishwere
required.Pliny,writing
in the firstcenturyBCE,
The three types of purple shells,
providesthe only
from left to right:Murextrunculus,
actualrecipeforthe
Murexbrandaris,Purpurahaemastoma.
of thedye
preparation
Thesespecimenswere excavatedby
solution.He reports
the authorat CaesareaMaritima.Israel.
(Natural
Histony
Scaleis in centimeters.Photographs
by
thatin order
9.62.135)
theauthorunlessnoted.
to dye 1,000poundsof
wool, it was necessaryto use some200lbs. of Purpuraflesh
as well as 111lbs.of
(histermfor thisshellfishwas bucinum),
fromthe larger
In
this
the
was
extracted
process, gland
murex.
small
were
crushed,shelland
shellfish
specimensonly.The
Such
a
was
also
observed
earlierby Aristotle
all.
procedure
the fleshmass (it was cookedfor nine days!),producedthe
Animalium
The
entire
(Historia
5.15.22-25).
mass,withwater,
was thenplacedin leadenvatsandsimmered.Theexposureof notoriousstenchforwhichthisindustrywas notedin antiqthe liquidto light,coupledwith theprolongedsimmeringof
uity.Pliny(Natural
History9.60.127)also statesthatin his day
46
BiblicalArchaeologist
57:1(1994)
the best Tyrianpurple in Europe was produced in Laconica
and the best in Africaat Meninx. In Asia, the best dye was
manufactured at Tyre.
The bay of Palaikastro, with the headland
in background.
BiblicalArchaeologist57:1 (1994)
47
According to current theories, the production of Tyrian
purple was originated and monopolized by the coastal
Canaanites-those people called Phoenicians by the Greeks.
Since these shellfish had to be caught by ratherlaborious
fishing and/or diving in shallow water, the price of the dye,
as noted above, was enormous. Therefore,a great variety of
dye substituteswas in use during Greco-Romantimes,
as we know from an ancient papyrus that lists recipes
for producing purple dye substitutes (Lagercrantz
1913).These imitations were produced from plant as
well as mineral sources. Still, none were as color-fast
as the true "royalpurple," hence the continued demand in antiquity for textiles colored by this highly
prized dye.
.Crete;.
I-
? ??I
--- '•" .i
.........
., .
"--. ..,
in a greatvarietyof
Thedyecouldbeproduced
- "!"."6.
...
_, t
-
r
shades, depending upon the mixture of the different
shellfish utilized. Variationscould also be made by
chemical means, such as light conditions and reducing agents. The resultingcolors included red, blue,
and dark purple, the latterbeing considered the most
noble of the tints. All shades were utilized primarily
to color ceremonial garments. Two of the best known
; ".
* "3.
examples are the purple stripes on the Roman toga
purpureaand the blue stripes on the Jewish tallit
'prayershawl'. The Hebrew name for this blue dye was
tekelet(Exodus 26:11;see Ziderman 1987), and we may note
here that according to Rabbinicrulings, only the true tekelet
dye (made from mollusks) should be used for coloring the
prayer shawl (ToseptaMenachot9,16). These religious rules
were probably a response to the use of substitute dyes.
-
tPalmiknro
I4.
juanon
l- awow
*
.3 '
U S
UO
.
. O':0 7S
"
U
-'-
This development presumably occurred sometime in the
Late Bronze Age (1550-1200 BCE).
Indeed, the earliest archaeevidence
for
Canaanite
ological
purple dye production-the
heaps of discarded shells and their fragments-are those
unearthed at Minet el-Beida (the harborof Ugarit), dated to
the 15th-14th century BCE;
Sareptaand Tel Akko (13th cen-
?:o.-.ckSe
--Il:i
Cl,•
'; 12:,q
++,,... ,,.-:"... :. ...
7:i:.-•+
LIf:,.
+:-:.*:.. ;:-.
n, ..' ,.,.--
'::?":
"-.... ,
-
.?~
4..
7c
"
,-?
. .. . .... . .,:-.
,. ::,:
7•.i.; .'., ,. '. " .' ,"
..
..
.-
,,
.
,
"..
." "
. .-. ... .
,
,
:.
,
--.:.
.
-
it
-
... .
..
.
_"
:
,
7" -
.. .
' • ,• ' ..
..
7
..
. ..
.. • .
. - •. .
, . -., .
.....
rr
ne
:
-:
?
. "
_ .
d
lK ia
'?T
, -
. ..
,
....JOWL .
-U W
?-
r
po
*AC
2apw
.Jltx&'
4
VA.
Karmon and
and at Tel Keisan (11thcentury BCE;
tury BCE);
Spanier 1988:184).There are, however, archaeologicaland
epigraphic indications from the Aegean, which suggest that
the 'royal purple' industry was first developed there,by the
Minoans on Crete,before 1750 BCE.
The current scholarly theories attributingto the Phoenicians the origin of the Tyrianpurple industry can actually be
traced back to the Roman era. The Greek rhetoricianJulius
relates a charming tale
Pollux, in the second century BCE,
(Onomasticon1.45-48) of how the hound of Herakles bit into
a murexfish on the shore at Tyreand thus discovered its dye.
Herakles then divulged this delightfuldiscovery to Phoenix,
the king of Tyre.This took place, accordingto Pollux, some
seven generationsbeforethe war at Troy.
Now in the Roman era it was quite fashionable to discuss and theorize on the origins of all sorts of inventions. The
purple industry-which was still quite an active art in that
era-was not exempt from these speculations. Indeed, the
Romans had themselves developed techniques for the artificial breeding of murexand other shell-fish, in rock-cutpools
called piscinae.A fascinating description of how to construct
such fish-ponds, adjoining a sea-side villa, is provided by
Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (De Re Rustica 8.16.7),
about 60 BCE.The origins of the Tyrianpurple industry were,
therefore,of some interest to the Romans. However, evidence
OIL..
The hill of Kastri at the Minoansite of Palaikastro,
EastCrete,from the
south. Thetown is locatedsouth of the hill.Thesite offereda largesurface depositof Murexshells.
unearthed in the Aegean at the turn of the twentieth century
suggested that the purple dye industry originated on Crete.
The first archaeologicalevidence of purple shells, constituting the debris of purple dye production, was already
reportedby HeinrichSchliemann(1880:115)at Troy.In 1903,
the BritisharchaeologistR C. Bosanquetfound numerous
murexfragments at a Middle Minoan site on the small island
of Kouphonisi,off the southeast coast of Crete (Bosanquet
1904:321).However,he describedthe details of his finds only
within the text of an unrelated article,which he published 37
years later (Bosanquet 1939-40).In 1904, Bosanquet also
found purple shell remains at the large Minoan site of
Palaikastroin EasternCrete.He thereforeproposed that the
Minoan purple dye industry,dated to the Middle Minoan era
(2000-1600BCE),
preceded the Phoenician industry,but few
accepted his opinion.
We should note here that the murexshellfish are edible,
and when they are found in small numbers, such as at the
Early Minoan site of Myrtos (Warren1972:263),they are presumably associated with the diet and not with the dye. But it
is also likely that these Early Minoan fishermen also discovBiblicalArchaeologist
57:1 (1994)
49
41?
N6 41
.-j
41tv
'Avg
*#.%14%
ered the dye, in the same way that the hound of Herakles
did many centuries later.
In 1981, I set out to investigate sea-purple origins by
analysis of pertinent archaeologicaland epigraphic data,
startingwith a coastal survey on Crete.At Palaikastro,which
is identified with ClassicalHeleia, I found a large surface
deposit of murexremains on the southern slopes of the Kastri. Most of these were fragmentary,but some were small
whole shellfish. These are, presumably,from the same
deposit noted by Bosanquet in 1904.In addition, numerous
murexare located within the remains of a well-built stone
structurelocated on a headland in the bay southeastof the
Kastri.
On the islandof Kouphonisi,which is identified with Classical Leuke,I succeededin locatingthe Minoan site visited by
Bosanquetin 1903.It is situatedon the slope of a hill overlooking the northshoreof the island.Besides the murexremains,
pottery fragments, and foundationsof a large stone structure,
it should be noted thattherearequitea few obsidian chips on
the surfaceof the site.
The water source for the modern fisherman is now located on the shore directly below the Minoan site. It was
presumably also utilized in antiquity,for near it are remains
of substantialindustrialfacilities.I believe that these are the
remains of an actualpurple dye factory,probablydated to the
Hellenistic era. At that time, the island of Leuke was a center
50
BiblicalArchaeologist
57:1 (1994)
On the north shore of Kouphonisi. The MiddleMinoansite is midway between the chapelon the hilland the beach.
Murexfragments from
the south slope of the
Kastriat Palaikastro.
Murexfragments fromthe headland in the bayof
Palaikastro.
C
4
?r
r
C.?
.,~.'CLL"~
~? ?
i
?-
-??. ~?i
9t~;
C
--;??--
?ne
??;
Y
:?
.' .t
*
''
~,
i.
C??
rr
)?
;5~?e
I'
_ -T
Stone structure remains at the Minoansite on Kouphonisi.
Remains of stone basins and well, nearthe shore on Kouphonisi.
of Tyrianpurple manufacture,as is known from Cretan
(Guarducci1940:104).
inscriptionsof the second centuryBCE
These manufacturingremainsnear the water source
include stone and clay vats, as well as basinsand channelsfor
the handlingof liquids.The locationof the site on the shore
near a water source is ideal, since both sea-waterand fresh-
water are requiredin the dye production. Some excavations
of the Greco-Romantown of Leuke, located on the shore
west of this area, have been undertaken (Papadakis 1983),
but as far as I know, the industrial site itself has not been
excavated, and its date is thereforestill speculative.
In addition to Palaikastroand Kouphonisi, murex
The modem water source at Kouphonisi:
a stone chamberwas
builtoverthe spring.
remains have also been found at other Aegean Bronze Age
sites. These include the Middle Minoan levels of three major
sites: Kastrion the island of Kythera (Coldstreamet al. 1973:
36, 282), Knossos itself (Hutchinson 1962:239)-presumably
from a near-by factory on the shore-and at the palace of
Mallia (Vogler1984).In the Late Helladic era, we find murex
remains both in and outside of Greece:at TroyVI, dated to
about 1425 BCE(Blegen 1937),and at Hala Sultan Tekkeon
as.
-it
*".
~i-
.:
Remains of a large stone-cut vat, about 2 m. in diameter(below).
Viewin frontof the brokenspout (above).
Cyprus, dated to the Late CyprioteIIIperiod (Reese 1987:205).
Akrotiri,on Thera,has now yielded remainssuggesting "probable local production"of purple dye (Aloupi et al. 1990),dated
to Late Minoan IA, ca. 1550 BCE.
To this archaeologicalevidence from the Aegean, we should
also add a significant epigraphic find. The Mycenaean Greek
termpo-pu-re-ia
'purple'is found in severaladministrativeLinear B tabletsfrom Knossos, which deal with textile allocations.
One of these tablets (KN X976) actually contains the expression wa-na-ka-te-ro
po-pu-re-[I 'royal purple'. This is the first
written attestationof a term which in later ages became synonymous with 'Tyrianpurple'. It is significant that this term
is first attested in a Mycenaean Greek text from Knossos.
The ClassicalGreekroot porphyr-is used to designate both
the mollusk and its dye, but it is not an Indo-Europeanword.
Astour (1965)proposed, unconvincingly to my mind, to derive this term from a Canaaniteroot *parpar
meaning 'to churn,
to boil'. However, the Canaaniteword for the purple mollusks
was evidently hillazbn-a word of unknown origin attested
only in TalmudicHebrew.The actual Phoenician terms for the
shellfish and its dye are still not attested. As for the Mycenaean term porphyr-,I would suggest that this was originally a
Minoan word, borrowed by the Mycenaeans when they
learnedfrom the Minoansto produce the dye.
It may well be that Minoan art has preserved depictions
of garmentsdyed with 'royalpurple'.Probablythe best known
Minoan sarcophagus, dated to about 1450 BCE,is the one
found at Hagia Triadathat illustrates elegantly dressed men
and women. Theirgarments are decoratedwith purple stripes
of various shades. A famous Minoan priestess figurine, 1600
also has what appearto be purple decorationson her attire,
BCE,
as do the dresses of the noble ladies depicted on the frescoes
of Thera,about 1550 BCE.
After Minoan power on Crete was supplanted by thatof
the Greeks,Trojans,and
the MycenaeanGreeks,about 1450BCE,
the peoples of Anatolia continued to produce the purple dye.
We should recall here the Homeric reference(Iliad4.141) to
purple coloredivory (!)used by Maionianand Carianwomen.
The Troadtradition of Tyrianpurple manufacturewas also
noted by Aristotle(HistoriaAnimalium5.15.547),who mentions
the waters off Sigeion, Lekton, and Caria as being rich in
purple shells.
The Canaanite dye industry in the Levant was certainly
not a monopoly. Indeed, the Greeks, Phoenicians, and others
continued to manufactureTyrianpurple throughout antiquity. By the Romanera,it was alreadyunknown who had first
invented the 'royalpurple' dye, and it was only then attributed
to a mythical Phoenician source and dated to the era before
the Trojanwar.
The archaeologicalevidencenow availablefromthe Aegean
suggests that this industry was not of Mycenaean, nor of a
Canaanite origin. It indicates that the Minoans on Crete and
some Minoanized islanders, such as those on Kythera,were
already manufacturingsea-purple in the Middle Minoan period, ca. 1750 BCE.It also seems certainthat this dye was being
produced by the people of Thera at the end of the Middle
Minoan era.
The Mycenaeans,Trojans,Cypriotes,and Canaanitesthen
continued to develop this industry in the LateHelladic period.
The Bronze Age Canaanitesand their Iron Age Phoenician
descendants were not the actual originatorsof this dye. It was
most likely a Minoan contribution,developed before 1750BCE,
which was then adopted by others, including the CanaanitePhoenicians.
p
.
.
....
:i?: , ?-..
"•;
?•
.,,
?
,
Priestess from Akrotiri fresco, Thera,ca. 1550 BCE.
She boasts red
and purplestripeson herdress.
Acknowledgements
'.
.
fl
r-
"
.
-.
'
DI
This is a revisedversion of a paperfirstreadat Citieson the Sea-Past
and Present:1stInternationalSymposiumon Harbors,PortCities and
CoastalTopography,
Haifa,September22-29,1986;and at the 1989Annual
Meetingof the AmericanSchoolsof OrientalResearch(Anaheim,CA),
November21, 1989.My conclusionswerefirstreportedby TheStar-Ledger,
Newark,NJ,on February8, 1982,p. 14.The fieldworkon Cretefor this
paperwas made possiblewith the aid of a grantfromthe RutgersUniversityOfficeof Researchand SponsoredPrograms,to whom I should
like to expressmy sinceregratitide.
.
h1r
,
Bibliography
.
Aloupi, E.,et al.
foundatAkrotiri.
1990 Analysisof a PurpleMaterial
Pp.488-490in
TheraandtheAegeanWorldIII,Vol. 1:Archaeology.Proceedings of the ThirdInternationalCongress,Santorini,Greece
1989),editedby D.A.Hardy,et al.London:Thera
(September
Foundation.
Hagia Triada sarcophagus, ca. 1450 BCE,
depictingfuneraryrituals.
Thegarmentsof the mournersbearcoloredstripes.
BiblicalArchaeologist57:1 (1994)
53
?'
'
?.•
11
Robert R. Stieglitz received his Ph.D. from Brandeis
University in 1971. He has excavated in the U. S., Greece, and
Israel and has surveyed throughout the Mediterranean
world. Dr. Stieglitz is the recipient of numerous academic
honors and awards and the author of some one hundred
articles on the ancient Near East and Mediterranean.
Formerly curator of the National Maritime Museum, Haifa,
he is now excavating on the Mediterranean coast of Israel.
Stieglitz has taught at universities and institutes in Greece,
Israel, and the United States. Currently, he is Associate Professor of Hebraic Studies at Rutgers University, Newark,
New Jersey.
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54
BiblicalArchaeologist
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Note elaborately
Minoan snake-goddess from Knossos,ca. 1600 BCE.
decorateddresswith its faded stripes,originallyof darkblue.
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