Royal Purple Industry in Lod during the Late Roman Period as Reflected in the Lod Mosaic

Amir Gorzalczany, Baruch Rosen, Naama Sukenik

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

A mosaic discovered in luxurious Roman domus in Lod (Lydda, Diospolis) in Israel, depicted among other maritime creatures Royal Purple yielding mollusks and wicker traps used to catch them. Historical sources indicating that during Late Antiquity residents of Lod dealt in dyeing and exporting textiles (also Royal Purple) were reexamined. Clearly many city inhabitants were involved with textiles, and some of them had their hands permanently dyed. The mosaic hints that the mollusks contributed to their wealth. The problem of inland dyeing with Royal Purple was discussed, as well as the continuation of this industry in the area into the Islamic period.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)582-606
Number of pages25
JournalJournal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient
Volume63
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2020
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Roman Lod
  • domus
  • dyeing
  • industry
  • mollusks
  • mosaic
  • textile

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • History
  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Economics and Econometrics

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