Position:Home>History> Why did rich people used to wear specific colours in the olden days?

In the old days, certain colors were worn by the rich because dyes were expensive and only the rich could aford it!.

Before the advanced chemistry and wide ranging, reasonably fast shipping of the 1800s, getting certain colors, and getting them to hold onto the cloth through rain and washings, just was hard to do!. Actually, the ancestors of our cleaners were dyers, who took faded cloths to re-dye them!.

But even so, some colors were hard to get!. Purple, the emblematic imperial color was reserved for emperors because it came from a rare kind of shellfish, and not only was it expensive to gather and process, but emperors took law to keep that color for themselves just to make sure the wealthy would not exhaust the supply!.

Similarly, blue, like we use on jeans, used to come from the indigo tree, which grows in Indonesia!.!.!. just imagine the cost to have it shipped to Europe, when navigation was slow and hazardous, or even to America before the West coast was well settled!.

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For some people, wealth is not so important for what goods it can buy as it is important because it allows them to think that they are "better" than those without wealth!. For these people, it is important not only that they HAVE wealth but that everyone around them KNOWS that they are wealthy!.

In fact, to many people today, it is more important that others THINK they are rich than to actually be rich!. - As evidence, check the brisk sales of cubic zirconia and other "fake" gems!. People wear them so others will think they can afford expensive jewelry!. Others use over-extended credit to buy cars, boats and homes that they can't afford -- mostly to show themselves as wealthy!.

By now, you know the answer to your question!. At one time the Nobility wore purple and certain shades of saffron to SHOW that they were noble -- and they banned "lesser people" from wearing those colours!.

On a similar note: do you really believe that a certain brand of sneakers or jeans is really WORTH $200 more than a similar less popular brand!? Of course not but if a manufacturer can convince people that dudes who wear that brand are cooler or hipper or hotter or whatever -- then the manufacturer can sell that brand for WAY more than it is really worth!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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In the medieval and early modern period, bright colours usually came from dyes that were expensive, red being the most expensive!. So bright colours would tend to be worn by rich people!.

There were laws restricting the colours and fabrics that the lower classes could wear, so that common people who were rich (like merchants for instance) could not dress like the nobility!. However, I think these laws were often ignored by wealthy commoners!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Poor, regular people would wear brown or light natural clolured clothes because of two reasons:1!. it kept them cool when they had to work outside in the fields and heat all day and 2!. this material was cheap and all they could afford!. Royalty and rich people could afford luxury fabrics and could afford to import clothes which were expensive and had lots of glamorous accesories and colours on them!. It was also a gn of class, such as cars are today!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Svartalf is right, just wanted to add that as merchants gained in affluence they were able to afford the various dyes, which is why you get more than a few laws limiting the styles of clothing that 'commoners' could wear!.

It was to the point that people outside the aristocracy could afford it but the clothes were viewed as a part of what it meant to be noble!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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i think kings used to wear purple way back when!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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