![](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/244/687/medium_thumbnail_cd0122_011_050721_t_1970_90_34_naples_root.jpg)
Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India
- maker:
- James Morton
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/404/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0008_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/403/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0007_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/397/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0001_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/398/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0002_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/401/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0005_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/400/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0004_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/402/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0006_.jpg)
![Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India](https://coimages.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/408/399/small_thumbnail_1978_0113_0009__0003_.jpg)
Two dye fastness tests exposed to sunlight in India, by Alexander Morton and Company, 1905-1915. Part of the Morton Collection.
Scotish manufacturer James Morton was alarmed by how quickly his firm's synthetically dyed fabrics bleached in shop windows. He was a disciple of the arts and craft movement, which criticised industrial production of artificial dyes as dehumanising workers and commodifying traditional techniques. Morton became determined to produce a new range of unfadable dypes. These are two of multiple sample test cards of dyed yarn that Morton sent to his brother-in-Law in colonial India, with instructions to expose them to sunlight. Based on these results, he employed chamist James Christie to develop a new range of natural and synthetic dyes that were more permanent. These colours were then sold with a lifetime guarantee, the first of its kind in the textile industry.
Details
- Category:
- Industrial Chemistry
- Object Number:
- 1978-113/9
- Measurements:
-
Fast colours: 90 mm x 418 mm x 3 mm,
- credit:
- Morton, J.W.F.