Woad (Isatis tinctoria) was the only blue plant in Europe until the 17th century

Isatis tinctoria, known by the term "woad", is a plant of the brassicaceae family, is of Asian origin and was almost certainly introduced into the European area as early as the Neolithic. Among the dye plants, woad was the only one useful for dyeing fabrics blue. The color of the woad is in the history of the Picts, Vikings, Lombards, Cathars. GReci and Romans did not like the color blue which was often associated with the color of death and the enemy. 

The crops of the Duchy of Urbino

For six thousand years man has used plants for dyeing. Only a little over a century ago, after the discovery of artificial colour, was this magical practice lost. Among all the now forgotten natural colors, woad blue is loaded with symbolism and a long history which in Europe and particularly in the ancient Duchy of Urbino is intertwined with forgotten agricultural transformations, majestic Renaissance textile production and the history of costume. Important traces of cultivation and processing are given by the presence of many millstones scattered throughout the Apennine area of ​​the Duchy of Urbino. Numerous documents tell of the control over cultivation and testify to how the Duchy was a very important district until 1600. 

The color of the divine and nobility

From 1200 in Europe woad blue - applied to fabrics - became the color of the "celestial divinity", of prestige, of nobility. It outclasses red and spreads to every European court.

To tell us about the use and preciousness of this color in clothing, there are splendid paintings that portray (between 1200 and 1600) noble characters and religious figures wearing, in addition to important styles, the light blue obtained with woad. It should be remembered that blue, always rare in nature, is translated into painting with lapis lazuli, a mineral color as precious as gold. 

Indigo from the East

The 17th century saw, in Europe, the advent of indigo from the East in the form of "loaves" ready for dyeing. The new blue is rich and economical, extracted from Indigofera tinctoria, it has a particularly convenient yield and abruptly replaces woad crops. The new blue that will give rise to Genoa canvas (jeans) erases ancient economies. The Duchy of Urbino, Erfurt, Coventry and Toulouse abandon their profitable agricultural production.

Perkin, the first synthetic color

In 1856 Perkin discovered the first synthetic color. For just under two hundred years, in Europe, natural dyes have no longer been used in fabric dyeing, but only industrial chemical dyes. Isn't it strange that such a recent innovation has made us forget how important nature has been?