Ender100@aol.com
Date: 09/22/03-02:11:22 PM Z
The comment about Indigo coming from the ink sacks of squid tickled my
memory, for I seemed to recall back in the closet in my mind of quasi-useless trivia
that there was an "Indigo plant". So I Googled it and came up with the
information below. I would imagine the workers were easy to spot as they bathed
in the Ganges River since they would be Indigo from knee down—now if they left
their pants on when they stomped the Indigo in the vats, perhaps they could
be credited with the invention of blue jeans. I did not see anyone with this
"affliction" at Big Sur this spring, so I am thinking it is not a plant common
to California, unless the resident artists in Carmel and Monterey have people
come in from outside to stomp their grapes and their Indigo, which given the
cost to live there, may very well be the case.
Woad is me.
Mark Nelson
purveyor of trivia
<A HREF="http://www.chriscooksey.demon.co.uk/indigo/">chemistry of natural and synthetic indigo dyes</A>
Indigo
This dye has been used since Neolithic times in Europe. It was highly prized
for it's colour and light fastness. Until the end of the 19th century, the
sole source was from plants, woad (Isatis tinctoria) and Dyer's Knotweed (
Polygonum tinctorum) in temperate climates and Indigofera species in the tropics.
Woad was widely grown in Europe, making some regions, especially Toulouse
(France) and Erfurt (Germany), very wealthy until the end of the 16th century. After
that time, it was used to make a woad vat for dyeing with indigo from India.
How the dye was produced in India ...
The cut plant is tied into bundles, which are then packed into the fermenting
vats and covered with clear fresh water. The vats, which are usually made of
brick lined with cement, have an area of about 400 square feet and are 3 feet
deep, are arranged in two rows, the tops of the bottom or "beating vats" being
generally on a level with the bottoms of the fermenting vats. The indigo
plant is allowed to steep till the rapid fermentation, which quickly sets in, has
almost ceased, the time required being from 10-15 hours. The liquor, which
varies from a pale straw colour to a golden-yellow, is then run into the beaters,
where it is agitated either by men entering the vats and beating with oars,
or by machinery. The colour of the liquid becomes green, then blue, and,
finally, the indigo separates out as flakes, and is precipitated to the bottom of
the vats. The indigo is allowed to thoroughly settle, when the supernatant
liquid is drawn off. The pulpy mass of indigo is then boiled with water for some
hours to remove impurities, filtered through thick woollen or coarse canvas
bags, then pressed to remove as much of the moisture as possible, after which it
is cut into cubes and finally air-dried.
Nature 1 November 1900
In a message dated 9/22/03 1:02:49 PM, jseigel@panix.com writes:
> As for Katherine's claim that "The "real" indigo was actually made from
> the inksacs of squid, and Judy's right that it hasn't been used in paint
> for a long time, but that has nothing to do with this discussion..... "
> and her fear that I would gloat over the careless mistake -- no, I
> wouldn't, anyone can make a mistake or just get confused momentarily.
>
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