What highly prized luxury commodity was extracted by ancient Phoenicians from the murex sea snail along the Lebanese coast?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: C. Tyrian purple dye (royal purple)
- Step 1: Phoenician coastal cities, particularly Tyre and Sidon, harvested thousands of Bolinus brandaris and Hexaplex trunculus mollusks.
- Step 2: The glandular secretions produced the colorfast purple dye reserved for imperial royalty and religious robes.
Answer
Tyrian purple dye (royal purple).
Why not the others: 'Lapis lazuli blue pigment' was mined in Badakhshan, Afghanistan; 'Egyptian blue faience paste' was a synthetic copper silicate glaze; 'Cinnabar red mineral paste' is mercury sulfide from volcanic mines.
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