Phoenician Exports: All That is Purple and Regal
When a country becomes famous for a certain product it is remarkable how that reputation can sustain exports and economic success millennia into the future even in the face of aggressive competition and modern intensive production techniques. It’s hard to imagine tulips from anywhere else but from Holland, it’s like Nokias from Finland or Champagne from Champagne, every country has at least one.
The Phoenicians were famous for their olive oil and their wines: olive oil exports gave the ancient Greeks a run for their money, Phoenician wines were highly prized in the region, the Pharaohs even took it with them to their graves, literally, both to make the journey to the underworld more bearable and to entertain their guests in the afterlife. “Lebanese wines, served in heaven,” now that’s an award winning ad campaign in the making if ever there was one!
In fact the Phoenician merchant fleet carried more goods per ship than anything afloat in the ancient world. One source states that “These ships were able to carry over 100 tons of goods. The commercial fleet of Carthage was comparable in size and tonnage to the fleets of major European powers in the 18th century.”
Another purple export from the Eastern Mediterranean and a Phoenician specialty was the natural organic dye known as Tyrian purple (i.e. from Tyre) extracted from the mucus membrane of a species of sea snail. Highly prized, cloth dyed with this pigment is reputed to have been worth twenty times its weight in gold. The secret of this dye was that it didn’t fade with age, if anything the color actually became brighter and more vibrant. Yet this organic and unique niche industry seems to have been relegated to the pages of ancient history, one wonders if anyone in Lebanon even knows how to extract this dye and use it.
It sounds strange that in the era of mass produced synthetic dyes to suggest reviving such an ancient craft, but I suspect among the super rich with more money to burn than sense, it is the one product that will achieve commercial success by appealing to the Levantine and Arab ego, obsessed as we are with regal pomp.
The wine industry in Lebanon, on the other hand, needs no promotional gimmick or introduction. The success of local wineries, specifically boutique wineries, has seen Lebanese wines surging ahead buoyed by a strong global demand from specialty and connoisseur markets. From China to Europe and the US, the popularity of Lebanese wines is undeniable.
In fact our wines, like Cuban Cigars, are highly sought after even in countries that do not trade with us, except the occasional consignment of cluster bombs that is! A foreign journalist friend of mine posted to Jerusalem by her media organization, never flies in from Jordan without a few bottles tucked away for friends and colleagues.
We should be proud and more mindful of selectively supporting such industries. We do not have to produce and export everything under the sun; but we can focus on what have been proven commercial successes. We can compete effectively if we improve quality and ensure uniformity of standards of exported manufactured products.
The Phoenicians were famous for their olive oil and their wines: olive oil exports gave the ancient Greeks a run for their money, Phoenician wines were highly prized in the region, the Pharaohs even took it with them to their graves, literally, both to make the journey to the underworld more bearable and to entertain their guests in the afterlife. “Lebanese wines, served in heaven,” now that’s an award winning ad campaign in the making if ever there was one!
In fact the Phoenician merchant fleet carried more goods per ship than anything afloat in the ancient world. One source states that “These ships were able to carry over 100 tons of goods. The commercial fleet of Carthage was comparable in size and tonnage to the fleets of major European powers in the 18th century.”
Another purple export from the Eastern Mediterranean and a Phoenician specialty was the natural organic dye known as Tyrian purple (i.e. from Tyre) extracted from the mucus membrane of a species of sea snail. Highly prized, cloth dyed with this pigment is reputed to have been worth twenty times its weight in gold. The secret of this dye was that it didn’t fade with age, if anything the color actually became brighter and more vibrant. Yet this organic and unique niche industry seems to have been relegated to the pages of ancient history, one wonders if anyone in Lebanon even knows how to extract this dye and use it.
It sounds strange that in the era of mass produced synthetic dyes to suggest reviving such an ancient craft, but I suspect among the super rich with more money to burn than sense, it is the one product that will achieve commercial success by appealing to the Levantine and Arab ego, obsessed as we are with regal pomp.
The wine industry in Lebanon, on the other hand, needs no promotional gimmick or introduction. The success of local wineries, specifically boutique wineries, has seen Lebanese wines surging ahead buoyed by a strong global demand from specialty and connoisseur markets. From China to Europe and the US, the popularity of Lebanese wines is undeniable.
In fact our wines, like Cuban Cigars, are highly sought after even in countries that do not trade with us, except the occasional consignment of cluster bombs that is! A foreign journalist friend of mine posted to Jerusalem by her media organization, never flies in from Jordan without a few bottles tucked away for friends and colleagues.
We should be proud and more mindful of selectively supporting such industries. We do not have to produce and export everything under the sun; but we can focus on what have been proven commercial successes. We can compete effectively if we improve quality and ensure uniformity of standards of exported manufactured products.
very helpful.
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