er till all the dye was drank up and confumed". They were obliged to mix different forts of fhells to make purple. They added to it various forts of ingredients, as nitre, human urine, water, falt, and fucus, a fea-plant, of which the best fort is found in abundance on the rocks of the ifle of Crete P.

The Tyrians, by the confeffion of all antiquity, fucceeded the best in dying stuffs purple. Their operation differed a little from what I have related above. They used nothing to make their colour, but purple fhells taken out at fea. They made a bath of the liquor they drew from these fishes. They steeped their wool in this a certain time. They afterwards took it out, and put it into another boiler where there was nothing but buccina or trumpet-fish. This is all that the ancients tell us of the practice of the Tyrians. In Solomon's fong there is alfo mentioned a royal purple which the dyers dipt in the canals, after having tied it in small bundles. We shall give a glimpse in these few words, of fome partiticular preparations, an exact account of which we cannot obtain *.

We know that the purple stuffs the most efteemed were those which were twice dyed. This preparation was very ancient. The purple ftuffs which Mofes used for the worhip of the Almighty, had been dyed twice. It was thus that they made this colour fo valuable, that it vied even

Plin. 1.9. fect. 62. p. 526. a Id. ibid.

P Ibid. locis cit. p. 526. fect. 64. p. 527. 1. 13. fect. 48. p. 700. 1. 26. fect.66. 1. 31. fect. 46. p. 565. 1. 32. fe&. 22. p. 581.; Plut. t. 2. p. 433. B.; Theoph. hift. plant. 1. 4. c. 7. p. 82. See alfo Turneb. adverfar. 1. 9. c. 5.

9 Plin. 1. 9. fect. 62. p. 526.

Chap. 7. V. 5.

* I fhall only offer fomé conjectures.

The best way of washing wools, after they are dyed, is to plunge them in running water. Probably the facred author had this practice in view, when he faid they fhould dip the royal purple in canals. As to what he adds, after being tied in little bundles, or packets, one may conclude from this circumftance, that instead of making the cloth with white wool, and afterwards putting the whole piece into the dye, as we do now, they then followed another method. They began by dying the wool in keins, and made it afterwards into purple stuff's

Exod.ch. 25. V. 4.

with

N 2

163196

4

with gold itself. One ought not to be furprised at it. The vein of the shell-fish from whence they got the purple, only furnished a very fmall quantity of liquor. Befides, it must be collected before the death of the fish, without reckoning the other preparations which required much time and precaution, and without mentioning the rifk they ran in fishing for thefe fhells at the bottom of the fea". I fhall confine myself to this fhort expofition of the preparations the ancients made ufe of to dye ftuffs purple. Those who desire a more particular account, may confult the modern authors who have applied themselves to find out, in the writings of the ancients, all the facts that have any relation to this matter.

We find in Aristotle and Pliny fome details of the preparation of purple; but they are not fufficiently circumstantial. As Aristotle and Pliny writ in the times when this practice was very common, what they have faid was then fufficient to give an idea of it; but it is too little to clear it up to us now, as they have left off the use of this dye for many ages. Accordingly, in spite of all the writings which have appeared on the fubject of this operation, it has been long doubted whether we are perfectly inftructed in the fpecies of fhellfishes from which the ancients drew purple ; they have even thought this fecret abfolutely loft; but yet it is certain it has been found again.

They have discovered, as well on the coafts of England, as on thofe of Poitou and Provence, fhells which have all the characters by which the ancients defcribe the fishes which yielded the purple. We fee many in the cabinets

See Arift. hift. animal. 1. 5. c. 15. p. 844. A.; Plin. 1. 9. fect. 63. p. 527.; Athen. 1. 12. p. 526. D.,

* It is very probable that the ancients had fome fecret to keep in folution in a proper liquor, the blood of purple fifhes till they wanted to use it. See Acad. des fcienc. for 1736, hift. p. 8.

u Plin. 1. 22. fect. 3.

* See Fabius Columna, and his commentator Daniel Major.

Y Acad. des fcien. an. 1711. mem. p. 166. & 167.

* Journal des fcav. Aout 1686. p. 195. &c.

Acad. des fcien. ann. 1711. mem. p. 168. & 179. ibid. ann. 1736. mem. p. 49.

of

of the curious. And if they use this no more, 'tis because they have found a way of making a dye more beautiful, and at less expense, with cochineal. They have even discovered a new purple, which, according to all appearances, was unknown to the ancients, although of the fame fpecies with theirs.

But further, though the fecret of dying purple should be loft, I do not fee any reafon to regret the lofs of it much. It appears, from the teftimony of all ancient writers, con-. firmed by modern discoveries, that stuffs dyed in this colour had a strong and difagreeable fmell. Besides, to judge of the effect of purple by the descriptions we now have of it, that colour could not be very agreeable to the eye. The fcarlet, fuch as we have now, is much above it. A few reflections will be fufficient to convince us.

They diftinguifh many forts of purple colours. One was extremely deep, of a red drawing to a violet. The other was more faint, approaching to our fcarlet; this was the least esteemed 8. Laftly, that which they valued the most, war of a deep red, of the colour of bullocks blood. "Tis in allufion to this colour, that Homer and Virgil give to blood the epithet of purpled. It was this difmal colour they principally fought for in these forts of stuffs *. It was

c Acad. des fcien. ann. 1711. mem. p. 169.

d Martial. 1. 1. epigram. 50. v. 32. 1. 4. epigram. 4. v. 6. 1. 9. epigram. 63. See Turneb. adverfar. 1. 9. c. 5.

Journ. des scav. Aout 1686. p. 197.; Acad. des scien. ann. 1711. mem.`p, 191. ann. 1736. mem. p. 55.

f Nigrantis rofae colore fublucens. Plin. 1. 9. fe&t. 59. p. 524.

M. Huet, in the collection of Tilladet, 1 2. p. 252. pretends on the contrary, that this species of purple approached to the colour we call dry rose, like to that which the leaves of the vines take when they are ready to fall. He adds, 'tis very nearly the fame we fee in the interior border of the rainbow. I think M. Huet is mistaken; but admitting his explication, this purple would only be more difagreeable. This yellowish colour which he means, is never pleasant to the fight.

Rubens color, nigrante deterior. Plin. fect. 62. p. 526.

b Laus ei fumma in color e fanguinis concreti. Plin. ibid.

We obferve in general, that the ancients only esteemed dark colours. Anacreon gives the preference to rofes which draw towards black.

i Iliad. 1. 17. v. 369. & 361.; Æneid. 1. 9. v. 349.

* This is the idea Caffiodorus gives us of it; he defines purple, obfcuritas rubens, nigredo fanguinea. Variar. 1. 1. ep. 2. p. 3.

in this that those of Tyre excelled all others. I leave it to be judged whether fuch a colour ought to produce a very a'greeable effect on the eye.

They had yet a fourth fort of purple very different from that I have spoke of. The colour was whitish ; but as this fpecies of dye does not appear to have been known but in ages greatly posterior to those we are now upon, I do not think it necessary to speak of it *.

The ancients had fo great an esteem for purple colour, that it was specially confecrated to the fervice of the Deity. I have already had an opportunity of observing that Moses often used ftuffs of this colour for the works of the tabernacle, and for the habits of the high priest. The Babylonians gave purple habits to their idols. It was the fame with most of the other people of antiquity. The Pagans were even perfuaded, that the purple dye had a particular virtue, and was capable of appeafing the wrath of the gods..

Purple was alfo the distinguishing mark of the greatest dignities. This custom was established from the earliest times. We have seen that the King of Phoenicia, to whom tradition fays they prefented the first effays of this colour, had it reserved for the fovereign. Among the presents which the Ifraelites made to Gideon, the fcripture makes mention of purple habits found among the fpoils of the Kings of Midian ». Homer gives us plainly to understand that it only belonged to princes to wear that colour 4. may remark in reality that they never ufed it but for this purpose; a custom obferved by all the nations of antiquity.

We

I fhall finish what I have to fay of the purple, by examining the opinion of a most able naturalift on the forts of ftuffs proper to receive this dye. He propofed his fentiment. on account of the American purple which is made at Pana

Plut. in Alex. p. 686. D.

Of this white purple, fee La traduct. de Vitruv. par Perrault, I. 7. c. 13. p. 249. note 3.

ni Jerem. c. 10. v. 9.; Baruch, c. 6. v. 12. & 71.

Diis advocatur placandis. Plin. 1. 9. fect. 60. p. 525.; Cicero. epift. ad Attic. 1. 2. epift. 9. t. 8. p. 115.

Art. 1. chap. 2.

Judg. c. 8. v. 26.

Iliad. 1. 4. v. 144.

ma

ma. They get it from a species of Persian conch, called, from the place where it is made, purple of Panama. The colour which this fhell affords will not take but on cotton, and other ftuffs obtained from vegetables. The author of whom I fpeak, in giving an account of this fact, adds, that there is nothing but the cochineal unknown to the ancients, which can ftain red, ftuffs made of animal fubftances. He concludes with this obfervation, that formerly purple stuffs could only be of cotton .

I do not think I fay too much, in afferting that this fentiment is plainly contradicted by the unanimous teftimony of antiquity. We fee by all the authors who have had occafion to speak of purple, that animal fubftances, and particularly wool, were fufceptible of this colour. The very manner tradition reports the difcovery of this colour, is a proof of what I advance. The first time they are faid to have seen the effect it had on the mouth of a dog: it was with wool that the fhepherd wiped the mouth of that animal which he thought bloody. Hercules took that wool, and carried it to the King of Phoenicia ". If the American purple will not take but on cotton, it is because the fishes which supply it, have different properties from those purple fhells which the ancients ufed. We may add, that probably they do not use the fame preparations for this dye as they did formerly.

The difcuffion I have just been upon leads us very na

See les mem. de Trev. September 1703. p. 1689. Sept. 1754. p. 1773.. Mem. de M. de Juffieu the elder, read at the academy of sciences, November 14.1736; taken from the Mercury of December 1736. p. 2834.

See Exod. c. 25. v. 5. c. 35. v. 6. & 23. ; Horat. carm. 1. 2. ode 16. v. 35. &c. Epod. od. 12. v. 21.; Alian. hift. animal. 1. 16. c. 1.; Ovid art. amat. 1. I. v. 251. 1. 3. v. 170.; Seneca. Hercul. Oet. act. 2.; Cicero philofophic. fragm. t. 3. p. 424.; Plin. 1. 9. fec. 62. p. 526. & 527.

This author even fpeaks of living theep, which they had dyed purple, 1. 8. fect. 74. p: 477.

"Palaephat. Achil. Tatius, locis cit.

If we believe Pliny, 1.7. p. 414. & Hygin. fab. 274. the art of dying wool in general was known very late, fince they give the honour of this discovery to the inhabitants of the city of Sardis, built after the taking of Troy. Strabo, 1. 13. p. 928.

But this fact advanced by these two authors, is denied by all antiquity.

tura'ly