medieval black dyes

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Those fabulously posh portraits of English and European royalty depict them in very smart black clothing, trimmed with dark fur, embellished with gold jewellery and embroidery, and often wearing a rich red to complement the look. In fact, black clothing was supposed to symbolise humility and plainness, and for this reason was associated with monastic life. There is some debate as to whether black was ‘posh’. Medieval authorities often tried to restrict the colours ordinary people wore, to distinguish them from the nobility and city élites in their finery. The colours mentioned are often red, purple and black. It is true that some methods of dyeing black involved huge amounts of chemicals such as alum, which would erode the fabric, the inference is that this would make black-wearing costly. But on the other hand, black had ‘humble’ connotations and if it was worn by some monastic and clerical orders (which swore to live in poverty), this suggests it could be dyed cheaply as well.
A mix of the three basic dyes, madder, weld and woad, with a lot of alum, could create a black. Acorns were allegedly used as black dye, as were ‘galnuts’ or oak apples, which were also used to make ink. Black as a colour was also associated with darkness and death. Black is not often depicted in period illustrations of clothing, perhaps indicating it was not such an attractive colour to wear, in comparison to brighter colours.

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Choctaw dyers use maple (Acer sp.) for a grey dye. Navajo weavers create black from mineral yellow ochre mixed with pitch from the piñon tree(Pinus edulis) and the three-leaved sumac (Rhus trilobata). They also produce a cool grey dye with blue flower lupine and a warm grey from Juniper mistletoe (Phoradendron juniperinum).

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Take green nutshells and grind them together and let them rot seven days in a (stoneware?) pot, and therewith make a black dye.

Whoever wants to make black dye, he takes oak galls and pulverizes them and adds alum thereto and boils it in a skillful way with alum and in urine and dyes therewith; if he wants to make it darker, add black dye thereto

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

The use of black as a dye, ink and paint between 1150-1250

A Few Points About The Colour Black, And Its Use In Our Time Period.
By L. J. M. L.

There has been some concern among members about the widespread existence of black in clothing and heraldry. In the course of researching other things, several members, most notably Raechel Carroll has discovered that black was not as rare nor as difficult to obtain as was first thought. In the household accounts of a noble woman from the early 13th century, a servant was sent to purchase 10 ells of black fabric. An ell is roughly 45 inches long, so just under a meter. “Ten ells of black serge for only 17s were bought for Richard De Montforte before his departure for Bigorre-this quantity was sufficient for a robe and also trappings for his horse.” Another notable piece of information from this same source says “The articles (of the Guild of Cappers, March 1270) warned against the common fraud of dyeing an old cap black, and reselling it, as new. This particular sharp practise was soon detected as the colour ran in the rain.”

Black ink as used in illuminations was made with the combination of oak galls, water and iron salts (ferrous sulphate). To make it into ink, a few spoonfuls of gum Arabic or arrowroot were added. The ink looked light grey when first going on to the page, but as it oxidises, it slowly turns black. This combination was taken from a Dover books translation of a text by Cenini. To get a dye for textiles, leave out the gum Arabic/arrowroot, and there you go. If you heat silk in it, you’ll get a dense blue black. On wool, it gives a very, very, dark brown colour. When held next to a modern t-shirt, it looked black, but compared to the silk, it had a definite brownish tinge. This information comes from Jennifer/Rannvik of the Vanaheim Vikings, who had tried the methods suggested above.

Oak galls are a concentrated source of tannin. If you can’t find oak galls, Jennifer suggested that a similar effect was produced by boiling 3 teabags in a cup water for about a quarter of an hour. It wasn’t as good but overnight, the ink turned a reasonable black. The oak galls improved overnight, even though they had been strained out of the mixture by passing it through a coarse cloth, such as muslin. After leaving the ink overnight, it turned as black as India ink within minutes of being applied to the page.

If you wanted to be completely period, then rather than using iron sulphate crystals, iron filings or rust would work as a source of iron to blacken the ink. Vegetable tanned leather turns black when exposed to iron rivets and fittings. The iron reacts to the tannin in the leather to produce the same black compound. The oak gall ink dyed wood black also. When the ink was used for writing, as it ran out of the quill, it went a little grey, which meant that to keep the continuity of colour, there was a need to dip the quill more often than would be necessary with Indian ink. Other suggestions for the origin of the colour black within textiles are the combination of overdying woad and walnut several times. This will approximate black, but does tend to fade to grey or brown quicker than the oak gall method. The clergy wore black, which mainly was wool, from the type of black sheep known in northern Europe.

In the book “The Arcana of Arts and Sciences” by Dr. M. Parker (Washington, US; J. Grayson, 1824) there is the further verification that galls with salts of iron gave the colour black. In this book he continues, by giving several recipes for linen, wool, and silk dyes. It has been shown, by Professor Barber in her book “Women’s Work: The First Million Years”, that it was quite possible to produce a good black on undyed textiles as far back as the Bronze Age. Again, this is utilising the combination of iron fragments, oak galls, and also the addition of vinegar. No quantities are specified however, it is up to the dyer to experiment, but that’s half the fun! Within the SCA publications, Dame Elayne Courtenay (of Carolingia), and her article in the _Pikestaff Arts and Sciences Issue_ of December A.S. XXVI (1991), "Instructions in the Art of Dyeing Black," pp. 51-53, contains useful information.

There has been archaeological findings too, of one pair of men's pants from Hedeby (10th century Denmark) that were dyed with walnut hulls and iron, and of some early Byzantine samites that included black silk. Additionally, many early Coptic tapestry weaves are catalogued as "purple," although their appearance is a pretty convincing black. Perhaps they were overdyed purple and then saddened with iron.

Other period sources for black: (dubh-Celtic): Alder (bark with copperas), Blackberry (young shoots w/ salts of iron) bog mire (mud), boiled in iron pot; described as very color-fast dull black; to make glossy black, add oak twigs or chips, alumina (from urine), Dock (roots) , Elder (bark), various lichens, Oak (bark and acorns) Yellow Iris (roots) , Meadowsweet - whole plant, Waterlily (roots), crotal (lichen) . The helpful and informative chart found on the homepage of Mara Reiley, a long time dyer and Celtic re-enactor, which is at http://www47.pair.com/lindo/Dyes.html , who was kind enough to share this with me via the H-Costume mailing list on the internet.

The Vikings also used various shades of bright colours including Jet black and brilliant white. Black was made by mixing three of the most expensive dyes: cochineal, woad, and weld, which is a brilliant yellows. This information comes from ‘Annex 2’, “Colours of the Vikings (NFPS)-Equipment Guide No.1-Basic Costume”.

An excellent source on the Innsbruk manuscript comes via the excellent page by Drea Leed. (I thought I had mentioned this as the home source, but I hadn't...sorry for any confusion there.) A somewhat later primary source for the use and recipes for black dye, comes from the Innsbruck Manuscript. These dye recipies were translated from the Innsbruck Manuscript, which was written circa 1330 AD in Tirol, in what is now western Austria. They are the oldest recipies for fabric dye to be found in the German language. The Innsbruck Manuscript was a great many things: A Latin-German dictionary of fish, insects, birds nad plants, a treatise on astrology, and a collection of household recipies and remedies. The text itself I found in “Ein Buch von Alten Farben” a wonderful work on medieval textiles and dyeing by Emil Ernst Ploss. He included the original text and facsimile of the Innsbruck manuscript, along with commentary and suggestions concerning the identity of the more obscure items used therein.

“Black:

Nim grün nusschaln vnd stozz Take green nutshells and grind them
die vnder einander vnd lazze together and let them rot seven
das siben tag vaulen in einem days in a (stoneware?) pot, and
hevelein vnd da mit verb therewith make a black dye.*
schwarcz varb.

Swer swarcz varb machen welle, Whoever wants to make black dye,
der nem aychephel vnd stozze die he takes oak galls and pulverizes
wol ze puluer vnd alaun dar them and adds alum thereto and
vnder vnd siude das in perchweis boils it in a skillful way with
mit alaun vnd in harn vnd verb alum and in urine and dyes
da mit; wil er tunchel machen, therewith; if he wants to make it
so mische swarcz varb dar vnder. darker, add black dye thereto.”
(This also looks a lot neater on Drea's page.)

These sources prove to me that black was far more common and prevalent in our time period, before our time period and well after our time period and into the current day as to make it more accessible to most members of the nobility. As we are portraying nobility within our persona’s in the Companie I see no reason why the use of black within clothing and so on cannot be allowed.

Bibliography.
Primary sources:
Innsbruk Manuscript, Tirol, Austria, Holy Roman Empire, 1330
Labarge, Margaret Wade, A Baronial Household of the 13th Century., Eyre and Spottiswood, England.

Secondary Sources:
Anon, Colours of the Vikings (NFPS) Equipment Guide No. 1-Basic Training, Annex 2, 1991
Barber, Elizabeth, Womens Work: The First Million Years,
Courtenay, Elayne, “Instructions in the Art of Dyeing Black” , Pikestaff Arts and Sciences, SCA Publications, Carolingia, December A.S XXVI 1991.
Parker, M, The Arcana of Arts and Sciences, J.Grayson, USA, 1824
Ploss, Emil Ernst, Ein Buch von Alten Farben

Tertiary Sources:
Leed, Drea, Dyes, http://www.dnaco.net/~aleed/dyes
Reiley, Mara, Celtic Dyes, http://www47.pair.com/lindo/Dyes.html

Questions? Comments? Wanna stroke my ego? Then e-mail me.

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]











Logwood

Purple and black (with other dyes)

Native to Asia. Logwood didn't seem to gain popularity until 16-17th Century, but then became a very common black dye. The molecule that is the Logwood dye can exist in three different forms, depending on how much oxygen has been incorporated into it. Logwood is an "indicator" color, one that changes with the pH of the solution. Thus adding either acid or alkali to the dyebath can modify the hue obtained. Because the iron-Logwood combination has such a pronouncedly blue tone, iron-Logwood can be used to turn yellows and golds into lovely soft greens. Compounding mordants by adding tin or alum in with the iron gives very fashionable lavender grays.

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

 








Black: (dubh)
Alder (bark with copperas)		Alnus glutinosa	Fearnóg
Blackberry (young shoots w/ salts of iron)		Rubus fruticosus	Smearna dubha Driseog
bog mire (mud), boiled in iron pot; described as very color-fast dull black; to make glossy black, add oak twigs or chips	alumina (from urine)		Dubh an Phortaigh; dubh-poill
Dock (roots)		Rumex obtusifolius	Copóg
Elder (bark)	copperas	Sambucus nigra	Trom
various lichens
Oak (bark and acorns)		Quercus petraea and robur	Dair
Yellow Iris (roots)		iris pseudacorus	Feileastram
Meadowsweet - whole plant		Filipendula ulmaria	Airgead luachra
Waterlily (roots)		Nymphea alba
crotal (lichen)

Dye Material:

Mordant:

Latin Name:

Gaelic Name: