title: Early pre-Hispanic use of indigo blue in Peru.
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).
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, 2110 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20052, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey C
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1015-4447
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Splitstoser
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University, 124 Garland Hall, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.
authors.forename: Tom D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Dillehay
authors.affiliation: Neerbroek 54, B-2070 Zwijndrecht, Belgium.; University College London, Institute for Sustainable Heritage, London WC1H 0NN, UK.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wouters
authors.affiliation: Instituto dos Museus e da Conservação, Departamento de Conservação e Restauro-Laboratório de Têxteis, Rua da Janelas Verdes no. 37, 1249-018, Lisbon, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-6825-8807
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Claro
mesh_terms: D001106:Archaeology / Q000266:history; D004396:Coloring Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000266:history*; D003368:Gossypium / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000254:growth & development; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D007203:Indigo Carmine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000266:history*; D010568:Peru; D013784:Textiles / Q000266:history
chemical_list: D004396:Coloring Agents; D007203:Indigo Carmine
keywords: Cotton; HPLC-PDA; Peru; South America; blue; dye; indigo; preceramic; textile; twining