Ochre Red
Among mineral pigments, red ochre is one of the most used since ancient times. Its importance is almost elemental when tracing the evolutionary steps of human beings.
Ochres are substances with a color range from yellow tones to deep oranges, reds, and purples. The chemical element providing the color is iron oxide. Red ochre derives its color from Hematite (Fe2O3).
The identification and transformation of red ochre are actions that indicate crucial abilities for defining modern Homo Sapiens. The incredible red color of ochre not only attracted humans (as seen in a previous entry) but may have also attracted other animal species like birds and primates.
Around 23 million years ago, a primitive primate ancestor acquired a new adaptation: trichromatic vision. This adaptation allowed our ancestor to distinguish the color red through their eyes, which had three types of cones to see the three primary colors. This evolutionary adaptation helped humans differentiate the color of blood, certain fungi, animals, and identify ripe fruits, among other functions.
As red is such a striking color and our ancestors had this new vision ability, it might have been one of the first communicative tools and identifiers between clans. Imagine how extraordinary finding a mineral or earth with such a color must have been. Soon, they likely investigated how to work with this material to use it on themselves or to establish identity, warnings, and signals between people.
What we do know for sure is that there are archaeological sites that confirm the use of red ochre 300,000 years ago. Not only Homo sapiens used this mineral pigment, but there is evidence that Neanderthals experimented with ochre around 250,000 years ago.
Red ochre also allows us to make hypotheses about human cognitive evolution. There are numerous archaeological sites where tools used to transform this mineral have been found. This means that an elaborate process was developed, signaling complex behavior far beyond what was previously believed in that era, changing the historical narrative (we'll discuss this further in another post).
Another sign of evolution is the ability to move. Using the "elemental fingerprint" tool, materials can be analyzed to determine their origin. After collecting samples from various sites, they are analyzed to identify the unique geochemical signature of each place. Thus, we know that some sapiens carried ochre with them to distant locations, marking the beginning of trade routes and social networks.
An example is the discovery of manipulated ochre in the Madjedbebe archaeological site. This suggests that Australia was inhabited 20,000 years earlier than previously thought.
But, what did they use red ochre for?
One of ochre's uses is sun protection. This discovery allowed people to travel without suffering from sunburn. Ochre is also an excellent insect repellent and preserves leather. We can imagine tribes with their bodies covered in red ochre and leather garments dyed red, traveling together across African territories and expanding worldwide.
This discovery probably led them to use body painting as a preventative medicine in their daily lives, as their bodies were highly exposed to both the sun and insect bites or wounds. Red ochre also helps regenerate skin cells, so it would have been used for treating scars.
A current example of the use of red ochre on the skin is the Onge people of the Andaman Islands, who use an ointment mixed with red ochre daily to protect their skin from scorpion bites, heal wounds, and protect against diseases.
Onge peoples
There are also abstract artworks carved into this material over 100,000 years ago, and in general, red ochre has been used to paint caves and in mortuary rituals where the deceased and their garments were painted red. It is believed to have represented birth and rebirth.
Carved ochre, Blombos Cave, South Africa. Photo: Christopher Henshilwood
I hope, like me, you have enjoyed and learned something new about natural colors. In a few weeks, we will be launching new workshops at Symbiotic Colours, many of them focused on mineral pigments, in different locations throughout Huesca province. Stay tuned to our social media and website.
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