Red Dye History

The kermes dye was considered to be native to the old world, “Used by the Aztecs for dyeing and painting” (Douma, 2008), and the Incas, who loved their reds. Throughout this time, various native american groups throughout Mesoamerica and South America used as dyestuff. It wasn’t until the 16th Century, that the Spanish conquest pushed the kermes dye into the hands of the Europeans. In fact, “When Spanish explorers discovered [the dye] and Conquistadors invaded Central and South America in the late 15th and 16th centuries, they found well developed civilizations with rich natural resources, including an unusually fine red dye” (Werner, 2006). The red dye had quite the impact during the Renaissance, with those who were wealthy being particularly
drawn to this color. This was due to the fact that this was the first time Europeans had seen this shade of color. Until that point, Europeans only had experience lighter shades such as red violet or maroon, but never a true red. It wasn’t until 1519, that the imports from the city of Tenochtitlan brought in the super dye, the Kermes. Once the Europeans had their hands on this red dye, they decide to trade it with the Chinese. Thus, “Cochineal was exported to China in the Manila galleons, where it became known as yang hung or, ‘Foreign Red.’” (Werner, 2006). Over time, there have been various points in history where monopolies have been held over the beetle, which was once thought to have been a grain by Europeans.
The Spaniards were the first to claim ownership of the beetle, holding a monopoly for over 400 years. The British, being a world power during the 1500’s, may have had land and power, but they experienced true control after their invasion of the Spanish-controlled Canary Islands, awarding the Queen twenty-seven tons of the dye in the form of cochineal shells. This explains why during the Revolutionary War with America, traces of the dye appeared in their historical red coats. By 1787, “Amsterdam merchant, Henry Hope, cornered the world market by purchasing 732,540 pounds” (Werner, 2006), or 95% of what was produced during that year. This dye was also prominent during 1865, appearing in poetry by Emily Dickinson. However, production tapered off during the 1870’s, when more synthetic red dye came into production, such as, “Alizarine, eosine, and roccellin” (Werner, 2006). Though the inclusion of new, “Fake,” dyes was popular, a cancer scare with these synthetic reds, brought an organic boom to life in the 1970’s, and breathed fresh air into the production of the kermes dye back into popularity. Now, companies such as Arequipa, “Keeps seven million cochineal-infested nopal cacti under care” (Werner, 2006), in order to continue to produce the dye to this
day.

Chemical Composition
The compound was first synthesized in 1858, when the material was first collected as a red crystalline structure. This material was then broken down to a side-chain reaction at a C-7 structure and was identified as a C-glucoside. After this, the carbon group was able to be relocated to the 2-position. It wasn’t until 1991 that the substance was further synthesized by a group of organic chemists. They discovered that the compound, C22H20O13 (Carminic acid), also known as C16H10O8 (Kermesic Acid) compounds, formed a tetraacetate with a -boxyl group, making it a 3, 5, 6, 8-tetrahydroxy - 7 - acetyl - 1 - methyl anthraquinone-4-carboxylic acid. This means that each of the major classes of carmine-based stains could describe how it was able to attach to specific substances. Carminic, or Kermesic, acid is both an ionic or covalent compound where the molecules have characteristics of both types.
The natural pigmentation was formed by mixing the insect’s exoskeleton with a mixture of hot water and sulfuric acid, or an alum solution, which came in contact with each other. It appears as a dark red color, and is considered to be one of the purest forms of red. The dye itself must be mixed with oil or resin in order to maintain it’s pigmentation, otherwise it is susceptible to fading to a brownish color, as it is not permanent under exposure to light. Over time, the majority of the natural methods of forming the dye, which used heat was likely to damage the dye molecule. Thus, over time, new methods were conceived by scientists.