The Colour Red : Through The Ages
What do you think of when you think of the colour Red? The colour can symbolise many feelings - passion, love, anger, and hate - such conflicting emotions under the one colour. Red is also seen as a power colour, which countries use for their flags and politicians wear when in the public eye. Red is such an intense and complex colour that has a long history…..
The origins of red:
Red can be dated back to the Stone Age, ochre paintings can be found on ancient graves and cave walls covering the world from Australia, Asia, Europe and Africa. Some scientists believe that these early cultures applied the colour to their bodies also and other theories claimed the colour was used to cover the bodies of the dead to ward of evil spirits. Red was an important colour, even at the very beginning of human existence.
Romans & Egyptians
Red had associations with life, health, and victory for the Egyptians and Romans. In ancient Egypt, red ochre was used by women to colour their lips and cheeks, and then during celebrations, people would colour their bodies with the pigment.
The Romans used red to beautify themselves too - even red hair was sought after. Red hair was considered to bring good luck. The Romans paid high prices for the poor red headed slaves from northern regions in order to make red hair wigs. Red also meant war and authority with Roman soldiers wearing red helmets and tunics, as well as gladiators and army generals who would smear themselves in red if they were victorious in a battle.
Red through the ages:
From these ancient times, the colour of red faded into lesser red tones with passing time, so true reds were rare and the hunt for a vibrant rich red started.
in Northern America, the Mesoamericans discovered a tiny insect called cochineal that were found on cactus. They found that drying it and crushing it produced a bright rich red. From the 1500’s trading of this bug and it’s dye started and the cochineal was transported to Europe, where it became a precious commodity.
Red has been used across the world, holding different and significant meanings. In India, for centuries they have been crushing the Rubia plant and producing a different shade of red to dye cloth. Married Hindu women have a vermillion red mark on their forehead, during marriage ceremonies the groom applies the colour along the parting line of the womens hair or as a dot, showing as a sign of commitment.
In china the wedding day is very much a red affair - The bride and groom wear traditional hong qua (red suits) to symbolise love and prosperity. And it is tradition that the newly weds spend their first married night in a red-sheeted bed.
Whatever your feelings towards the sport of bullfighting In Spain. The Matador uses Red to get the attention of the bull - flicking the red ‘Muleta’ in a form of a dance.
Red in stories:
Red symbolises a warning sign, from children’s fairytales like Little Red Riding Hood and Snow White. Red was used in Red riding hood to symbolise blood and the journey of menstruation. Red Riding hood has also been said to be about sexuality and the danger of trusting strangers. Whereas Snow White eats the red apple - a blood poisoned apple, which looks juicy and tempting.
Temptation is a theme in fairytales - The Red Shoes is a good example. The vain girl is bought beautiful red shoes, and is told not to wear them to church, but she cant help but wear them. Resulting in her shoes dancing, never stopping until the vain girl dies.
Red in religion:
Red plays a part in religion, and particularly in the Catholic Church. Traditionally the pope would wear a red satin or velvet Papal slippers, which symbolises God’s burning for humanity. His cardinals wear red as they are the closest advisors to the Pope and shows that they are ready to shed their blood for the church and Christ.
Such intensity and tradition goes with the colour red.
Red Today:
Recent studies have shown that red gets the most attention and reaction compared to other colours. Because of this, red is often used for warning/danger signals, labels, and signs throughout the world. Red also makes the pulse quicken just by looking at the colour! Famous stars walk down the Red Carpet when attending an awards ceremony (The earliest reference of a red carpet is in the play Agamemnon written in 458 BC. The main character is greeted by his wife, who offers him a red path to walk on). Red is predominantly used in holidays - Christmas and Valentines Day. Santa wears a red outfit (This version of Santa was introduced in the 1930s by Coca-Cola as part of their advertising campaign and is still considered as our Santa Claus today).
I have always loved the colour red, I use a lot of it in my work - i find red still stands out compared to every other colour. I didn’t realise just how important and what a long history the colour had until I started venturing down the rabbit hole of the internet…I could have written a whole book about this colour! I find it fascinating that a colour can have so many different meanings throughout the world. But as I feel drawn to the colour, I realise it’s not just me, it’s a colour that all the world has been drawn to, it’s a colour we all have in common too, everyone in the world has red blood running through their veins. Red connects us all from the beginning of time until present day.
L x
