Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile
In 1906, Charles T. Currelly participated in excavations at Deir el-Bahri, Egypt, recovering votive offerings from the Temple of Hathor (Dynasty XVIII, reign of Hatshepsut, 1479–1458 BCE). These objects became part of the founding collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, where Currelly served as the...
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2025-07-01
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| author | Jennifer Poulin Margaret-Ashley Veall Chris Paulocik |
| author_facet | Jennifer Poulin Margaret-Ashley Veall Chris Paulocik |
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| description | In 1906, Charles T. Currelly participated in excavations at Deir el-Bahri, Egypt, recovering votive offerings from the Temple of Hathor (Dynasty XVIII, reign of Hatshepsut, 1479–1458 BCE). These objects became part of the founding collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, where Currelly served as the first director. Among the offerings are several paintings on linen cloth. During examination of one painted textile, a border fringe with cream (suspected undyed), yellow and blue looped threads was sampled and analysed for dyes using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The yellow threads were found to contain a tannin-rich dyestuff, likely derived from <i>Rhus</i> spp., a common dye in ancient Egypt. Unexpectedly, the blue threads yielded brominated-indigoid marker compounds, indicating the use of a <i>Murex</i>-derived dye. While purple shellfish dye is rare due to the high cost of its complex production, blue shellfish dye is even more exceptional and has only been identified a handful of times on archaeological textiles. Calculated values of di-brominated to mono-brominated indigoid compounds suggests the dye originated from an indigotin-rich type of <i>Hexaplex trunculus</i> snail, a Mediterranean species. This finding represents a rare example of blue shellfish dye use in ancient Egypt and provides new insights into the dyeing technologies of Dynasty XVIII and the importance of this sky-blue colour in the worship of the goddess Hathor. |
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| spelling | doaj-art-3ad8b95e15ba4bffb18b5ee0a38dbd4d2025-07-25T13:24:14ZengMDPI AGHeritage2571-94082025-07-018725710.3390/heritage8070257Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive TextileJennifer Poulin0Margaret-Ashley Veall1Chris Paulocik2Canadian Conservation Institute, 1030 Innes Rd., Ottawa, ON K1B 4S7, CanadaCanadian Conservation Institute, 1030 Innes Rd., Ottawa, ON K1B 4S7, CanadaRoyal Ontario Museum, 100 Queens Park, Toronto, ON M5S 2C6, CanadaIn 1906, Charles T. Currelly participated in excavations at Deir el-Bahri, Egypt, recovering votive offerings from the Temple of Hathor (Dynasty XVIII, reign of Hatshepsut, 1479–1458 BCE). These objects became part of the founding collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, where Currelly served as the first director. Among the offerings are several paintings on linen cloth. During examination of one painted textile, a border fringe with cream (suspected undyed), yellow and blue looped threads was sampled and analysed for dyes using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The yellow threads were found to contain a tannin-rich dyestuff, likely derived from <i>Rhus</i> spp., a common dye in ancient Egypt. Unexpectedly, the blue threads yielded brominated-indigoid marker compounds, indicating the use of a <i>Murex</i>-derived dye. While purple shellfish dye is rare due to the high cost of its complex production, blue shellfish dye is even more exceptional and has only been identified a handful of times on archaeological textiles. Calculated values of di-brominated to mono-brominated indigoid compounds suggests the dye originated from an indigotin-rich type of <i>Hexaplex trunculus</i> snail, a Mediterranean species. This finding represents a rare example of blue shellfish dye use in ancient Egypt and provides new insights into the dyeing technologies of Dynasty XVIII and the importance of this sky-blue colour in the worship of the goddess Hathor.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/7/257shellfish bluedye analysis<i>Hexaplex trunculus</i>ancient Egyptgoddess Hathorgas chromatography–mass spectrometry |
| spellingShingle | Jennifer Poulin Margaret-Ashley Veall Chris Paulocik Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile Heritage shellfish blue dye analysis <i>Hexaplex trunculus</i> ancient Egypt goddess Hathor gas chromatography–mass spectrometry |
| title | Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile |
| title_full | Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile |
| title_fullStr | Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile |
| title_full_unstemmed | Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile |
| title_short | Identification of Shellfish Blue on an Ancient Egyptian (Dynasty XVIII) Painted Votive Textile |
| title_sort | identification of shellfish blue on an ancient egyptian dynasty xviii painted votive textile |
| topic | shellfish blue dye analysis <i>Hexaplex trunculus</i> ancient Egypt goddess Hathor gas chromatography–mass spectrometry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/7/257 |
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