06/12/2025
As part of the chemistry of Advent and Christmas, the second candle of advent is also purple. The first purple candle is the candle of hope and the second purple candle is the candle of peace. Attached is information on the chemistry of purple and a podcast on the chemistry of indigo, sometimes used to make purple dye.
Historically, Tyrian purple was extracted from shellfish of the Murex genus, such as Hexaplex trunculus and Murex brandaris. Extracting purple dye from shellfish was a skill not limited to those living on the shores of the Mediterranean. The color known as Tyrian purple was produced elsewhere, but Phoenicia (present day Lebanon) was famous for the color of its Tyrian purple and became a big production center. The cloth was prized by the Romans, and used in the fine robes of kings and emperors. The most prized shade of Tyrian purple is thought to have been the product of a double-phased process. Two different snail types were found near Tyre, both producing slightly different colors. Cloth could be dipped once in the indigo dye of one type of marine snail, and once in the purple-red dye of another type. The fall of Constantinople in 1453 signaled the end of the large-scale dye industry of Tyrian purple, and cheaper dyes such as madder and lichen purple took over. In addition to Tyrian purple, the Phoenicians also made an indigo dye, extracted from a closely related species of marine snail. This color was known as royal blue or hyacinth purple.
In the mid 19th century, William Perkin produced a synthetic purple known as mauveine, bringing purple within reach of the ordinary citizen. The active chemical constituent of Tyrian purple dye, 6,6’-dibromoindigo, was isolated in the early 20th century.
https://www.chemistryworld.com/podcasts/indigo/3009550.article
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