Archaeological Views: The Great Tekhelet Debate—Blue or Purple?

For ancient Israelites, tekhelet was God’s chosen color. It was the color of the sumptuous drapes adorning Solomon’s Temple (2 Chronicles 3:14) as well as the robes worn by Israel’s high priests (Exodus 28:31). Even ordinary Israelites were commanded to tie one string of tekhelet to the corner fringes (Hebrew, tzitzit) of their garments as a constant reminder of their special relationship with God (Numbers 15:38–39). But how do we know what color the Biblical writers had in mind? While tekhelet-colored fabrics and clothes were widely worn and traded throughout the ancient Mediterranean world, by the Roman period, donning […]