History
A HISTORY OF NATURAL DYEING TEXTILE
The middle Ages and early years of the renaissance saw the dye industry spread from the eastern Mediterranean toward the west and northward into Europe.
It is said that there were some 200 dye enterprises in Jerusalem during the 12th century. In 1160 A.D, Jewish dyers gained influence westward and took control of most of the Italian dye industry.
Florence, ltaly in the 14th century was famous for their dye work. As the Renaissance progressed and Europe began importing indigo and other dyes, controversy arose concerning the handling and control of foreign dyestuffs.
UP to the middle of the 19th century, only natural dyes were available. In 1856, W.H.Perkins accidentally discovered aniline dye, and synthetic dyes slowly began replacing natural dyes.
Many historical villages such as Williamsburg, Plymouth Colony, the George Ranch, and the Ozark Folk Center, keep the old ways of dyeing alive with their historical presentations.
Natural Dye:
The majority of natural dyes are from plant sources – roots, berries, bark, leaves, and wood, fungi, and lichens. Textile dyeing dates back to the Neolithic period Throughout history, people have dye their textiles using common, locally available materials Scarce dyestuffs that produced brilliant and permanent colors such as the natural invertebrate dyes purple and such as indigo, saffron, and madder were raised commercially and were important trade goods in the economies of Asia and Europe. Across Asia and Africa, patterned fabrics were produced using resist dyeing techniques to control the absorption of color in piece – dyed cloth. Dyes from the new World such as cochineal and logwood were brought to Europe by the Spanish treasure fleets, and the dyestuffs of Europe were carried by colonists of America.
The discovery of men – made synthetic dyes late in the 19th century ended the large – scale market for natural dye.