The History of Color
For thousands of years, we’ve colored our clothes, our bodies, and our environments to express our culture, our beliefs, and our traditions.
![24 dyed Dacron samples attached to a bi-fold cardstock brochure.](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/severon_cationic_dyes-415x257.jpeg)
DIGITAL COLLECTIONS
Color
This digital collection features a broad selection of materials related to the scientific study of color and the science and practice of dyeing and painting.
![colorful graphic for BOLD exhibition](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/BOLD_logo_large-415x257.jpeg)
EXHIBITIONS
BOLD: Color from Test Tube to Textile
Take a colorful journey through more than 150 years of natural and synthetic dye-making.
![Collage of blue images including the Virgin Mary's cloth and lapis lazuli](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Pdcst24_3000x3000_Ep1-600x371.jpg)
DISTILLATIONS PODCAST
The Word for Blue
From Homer’s ‘Odyssey’ to the internet’s great dress debate, our perception of the color blue has both fascinated and frustrated us.
![Painting of William Henry Perkin](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/william_henry_perkin_painting-415x257.jpeg)
SCIENTIFIC BIOGRAPHIES
William Henry Perkin
With the accidental discovery in 1856 of the first commercialized synthetic dye, mauve, Perkin introduced a new era in the chemical industry.
![](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/tie-dye-hero-415x257.jpg)
DISTILLATIONS MAGAZINE
Fit to Be Dyed
The enduring appeal of tie-dye.
![symbol of a rainbow](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/theory_practice_color_rainbow-415x257.jpeg)
COLLECTIONS
Dig Deeper in the History of Color
Interested in historical materials about color? Explore our museum and library collections!
![Navajo prayer rug](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/navajo_prayer_rug_crop-415x257.jpeg)
GROUP & SCHOOL TOURS
Synthetic Dyes and Indigenous Craft
Learn about the Navajo “Eye-Dazzler” in this interactive virtual museum program.
![Detail of a pink translucent glass sculpture with wavy lines](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/mine_vessel_crop-415x257.jpeg)
COLLECTIONS BLOG
The Color of Extraction
Encountering rare earths in art, environments, and the phone in my pocket.
![](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/weaving_cultures_900x600-415x257.jpeg)
DISTILLATIONS MAGAZINE
Weaving Cultures
In exile, Navajo created new designs for their rugs and blankets using the new synthetic dyes.
![prototype crayon samples depicting a variety of skin tones](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/bellens_more_than_peach-415x257.jpeg)
DIGITAL EXHIBITIONS
Redefining Nude
Many everyday items are described as “flesh” and “nude” in color. Whose skin color do they represent?
![](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/True-Blue_DuPont-and-the-Color-Revolution_3-415x257.jpg)
DISTILLATIONS MAGAZINE
True Blue: DuPont and the Color Revolution
DuPont’s colorists were prophets of the color revolution, guiding corporations and consumers in choosing hues for everything from car fenders to countertops.
![Color abstract landscape painting](https://www.sciencehistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/claude_monet_-_le_pont_japonais_w1933_-_musee_marmottan-monet_1920s-415x257.jpeg)
THE DISAPPEARING SPOON PODCAST
Claude Monet and Bee Purple
How cataracts nearly ruined the impressionist painter’s career—and then revived it by giving him an insect-like superpower.