The Phoenicians were masters at scarlet dyeing. Scarlet is a bluish red. Kermes lost its important position in the dyeing industry soon after the Spaniards entered the market with a similar but superior product, the cochineal insect from the New World . The mysterious new product was thought for a long time to be of botanical origin, dried fruit or seed, which is not surprising to those who have looked at the material without the aid of a magnifying glass. The Spaniards were secretive about it and not willing to disclose its origin. The discovery of magnificent colour, scarlet, is attributed to the Mezopotamias in ancient times. The Sumerians were skilled in making woollen cloth. They were meticulous people, who described in detail the techniques of cloth making etc. on terracotta tablets.
