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. 2016 Sep 14;2(9):e1501623.
doi: 10.1126/sciadv.1501623. eCollection 2016 Sep.

Early pre-Hispanic use of indigo blue in Peru

Jeffrey C Splitstoser  1 , Tom D Dillehay  2 , Jan Wouters  3 , Ana Claro  4
Affiliations

Early pre-Hispanic use of indigo blue in Peru

Jeffrey C Splitstoser et al. Sci Adv. .

Abstract

Archaeological research has identified the use of cultivated cotton (Gossypium barbadense) in the ancient Andes dating back to at least 7800 years ago. Because of unusual circumstances of preservation, 6000-year-old cotton fabrics from the Preceramic site of Huaca Prieta on the north coast of Peru retained traces of a blue pigment that was analyzed and positively identified as an indigoid dye (indigotin), making it the earliest known use of indigo in the world, derived most likely from Indigofera spp. native to South America. This predates by ~1500 years the earliest reported use of indigo in the Old World, from Fifth Dynasty Egypt [ca. 4400 BP (before present)]. Indigo is one of the most valued and most globally widespread dyes of antiquity and of the present era (it being the blue of blue jeans).

Keywords: Cotton; HPLC-PDA; Peru; South America; blue; dye; indigo; preceramic; textile; twining.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Diagram and photo of specimen 2009.052.01.B.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. Chromatographic analysis of sample 2009.065.01.A, recorded at 600 nm.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3. UV-vis spectral identification of the four peaks from Fig. 2.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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