If we're all the raw stuff of the cosmic effects, one would rather be the fire that tempers a sword than the fish that dyes a purple cloak. And a society like ours wastes such good material in producing its little patch of purple!
- Edith Wharton, The House of Mirth
for those content with that little patch of purple, there is a recently produced a history of the international dyestuff industry that is fairly fascinating. via layers of meaning.