AIC's 52nd Annual Meeting

This paper presents initial findings from a study of dyes in textile fragments found at the ancient town of Karanis—a small, rural, farming village in Egypt's Fayoum Oasis. University of Michigan (U-M) excavations in the 1920s and 30s uncovered thousands of textiles at the site, and today approximately 3,500 of these are housed at U-M’s Kelsey Museum of Archaeology. Although dates for the textiles are imprecise (Karanis was occupied from the 3rd c BCE to the 5th c CE), the collection is important because of its age, size, secure provenance, and character as a collection of textiles from domestic versus funerary contexts. Scholars have written about various aspects of the collection: contexts of its discovery, decorative techniques represented in it, and evidence of domestic cloth production at the site. Our study adds new information by investigating dyes in the collection. Although most of the fragments are small, worn, and constructed using simple techniques, they are highly colorful. To date, more than 50--including fragments of garments, furnishing fabrics, and baskets--have been examined with three relatively simple and affordable techniques: multispectral imaging (MSI), optical microscopy, and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). Results indicate the use of indigo for blues and greens, tannins for browns, and madder for reds and oranges, while yarns spun with indigo- and madder-dyed fibers produce pinks and purples. No evidence of insect or mollusk based dyes has been found. Dyed fibers include wool, linen, raffia palm, and goat hair. While these results are not necessarily unexpected for the time period, the range of decorative techniques and highly skillful color modulation is surprising; it suggests a sophisticated level of production and a widespread desire for colorful, patterned items—not just for special occasions (like one’s funeral shroud), and not just for elite individuals, but also for every day wear and use in the lives and homes of residents in a rustic agricultural town. While MSI and optical microscopy have been most useful for investigating dyes, fibers, and production techniques, XRF has allowed us to look at evidence of pesticide use in the collection. As part of this paper, we also briefly discuss the treatment and research history of the textiles, from the field to the present day.