“This color immediately caught our attention”

During excavations in Israel’s Timna Valley in 2021, archaeologists discovered fabric remnants with a purple dye from ancient times

During excavations in the Timna Valley in 2021, Israeli researchers discovered ancient textiles with a purple dye from the time of the biblical rulers David and Solomon. “The color immediately caught our attention,” reports Professor Erez Ben-Yosef from Tel Aviv University. “We could hardly believe that we had found the true purple from ancient times.”

A team has been conducting research in the copper mines of Timna – one of the oldest mining sites in the world – in the Negev Desert for almost a decade. The current research series was supervised by Naama Sukenik, Curator of Organic Finds at the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), together with Professor Erez Ben-Yosef from Tel Aviv University and Professor Zohar Amar, David Iluz and Alexander Varvak from Bar Ilan University.

The purple-colored fabric remains have been amazingly well preserved, which can be attributed to the dry climate of the Israeli desert. Professor Erez Ben-Yosef explains: “The extremely dry climate in this desert region preserves organic materials such as textiles, cord and leather from the Iron Age. This gives us an extraordinary glimpse into biblical times.” An examination using the radiocarbon method revealed that the fabric remains date back to around 1000 BC. The 3,000-year-old fabric remains are the first finds of their kind. “Before the recent discovery, we had only come across shell waste and potsherds with dye stains that provided evidence of purple production in the Iron Age,” the researchers say.

In addition, the scientists reconstructed the dyeing process and found that the dyes came from three snail species: the red-mouthed rock snail (Stramonita haemastoma), the blunt spiny snail (Bolinus brandaris) and the Hercules club (Hexaplex trunculus). Depending on how much they were exposed to light after dyeing, the fabrics took on a purple or light blue hue, according to the IAA. In ancient times, a purple robe was associated with kings, nobility and the priesthood. The purple color “often cost more than gold” and was very popular because it did not fade, reports Naama Sukenik.