Purple

Delosperma (commonly known as ice plant) has a long history of use by indigenous and traditional cultures, particularly throughout its native regions in southern and eastern Africa.

Ancient and indigenous communities utilized different species of Delosperma for several purposes

Traditional Medicine: Leaves and roots were prepared as juices and decoctions to treat ailments like dysentery, pneumonia, liver/kidney issues, and bloating.
Spiritual & Ritual Practices: Various cultural groups in South Africa, including the IsiZulu people, utilized plants like Delosperma saturatum as a protective charm or magic plant. They would ground the plant material in water to make intelezi—a wash used for cleansing and purifying warriors and weapons before battle.
Brewing & Fermentation: The leaves of certain species, such as Delosperma cooperi, were utilized in the preparation of khadi, a traditional alcoholic beverage.

The leaves of certain species were sometimes eaten to prevent scurvy and were used as a source to cultivate yeasts for brewing be

Delosperma - Wikipedia

List of psychoactive plants - Wikipedia

Armenian Purple Ocher, the Lori province, ancient trade of rare earth pigments, classical mineralogy, and the long-standing cross-cultural relationships between Greece and Armenia.

Armenian Purple Ocher is a natural earth pigment mined from iron ore and augite-porphyry deposits in the Lori province of northern Armenia.

Color: An earthy, cool violet-red or bluish-red with subtle purple tints.
Composition: Contains roughly 13% iron oxide and 49% silica, combined with a naturally calcined form of hematite and traces of clay or calcite.
Properties: Highly permanent, lightfast, semi-opaque to semi-transparent, and compatible with all painting media.
Uses: Valued by artists for portrait work (creating cool flesh tones), botanical illustrations (bark and autumn leaves), and neutralizing greens in landscapes.

The term pharmakeia (Greek: φαρμακεία) refers to the ancient use of medicines, drugs, potions, or magical herbs/poison, though historical earth pigments like purple and red ochers were sometimes cataloged in ancient medical and natural history texts (such as those by Dioscorides or Pliny) alongside mineral remedies and earths used in antiquity. You can find raw pigments and artist oils made from this specific deposit via Natural Pigments.

Armenian Purple Ocher is a rare, naturally occurring earth pigment famed for its unique, cool, bluish-red to violet hue.

The Geology: Mined from the mineral-rich mountains of the Lori Province (historically known as Tashir or Tashirk) in northern Armenia, this pigment is a naturally calcined form of hematite (iron oxide, α-Fe₂-O₃) formed near volcanic augite-porphyry deposits and iron ore beds.
The Color Properties: Unlike standard red ochers, its specific particle size and the presence of natural manganese compounds cause it to diffract light differently, producing a rich, earthy violet or "mushroom pink" tone when mixed with white.

The Ancient Greek Connection

While "Tyrian Purple" was famously harvested from Mediterranean sea snails by the Phoenicians, earth-based purples and deep reds were highly prized by Ancient Greek and Roman artists, scholars, and trade networks:

Classical Mineralogy & Language: The word "ocher" originates from the Ancient Greek word ochros ($\omega\chi\rho\acute{o}\varsigma$), meaning "yellowish" or "pale". Greek naturalists categorized earth pigments by their textures and geographic sources.
The "Sil Atticum" and "Rubrica Sinopica": Ancient writers such as Theophrastus (in his treatise On Stones), Dioscorides, and the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder heavily documented these minerals. Historically, deep purple ochers like the variety found in Armenia were associated with terms like Sil Atticum (Attic earth) and Rubrica Sinopica (Sinopic red). Sinopis originally referred to high-quality red earth exported through the Greek port city of Sinope on the Black Sea—a critical trade hub linking the Caucasus (including Armenia) to the broader Greek world.
Manuscripts and Iconography: Armenian purple ocher and similar regional pigments were highly integrated into classical Mediterranean painting and later used extensively for spiritual iconography in historical manuscripts and Byzantine-influenced architecture across the region. [5]

Lori's Broader Historic Timeline

The Lori province has served as a cultural and industrial melting pot for millennia:

Bronze and Iron Ages: Archaeological excavations at sites like the Lori Berd fortress and Fioletovo reveal that the region’s vast mineral ores have been heavily mined and utilized by human societies for over 3,000 years, yielding advanced artifacts containing Urartian and Assyrian design elements.
The Greco-Armenian Legacy: Armenia shared deep ties with the Hellenistic world following the conquests of Alexander the Great. Centuries later, these historic ties culminated in the settlement of Pontic Greek communities in Lori's mining districts (such as Alaverdi, Akhtala, and Yaghdan). To this day, a small community of Greeks resides in Lori, preserving a unique Pontic dialect that retains roots from ancient Ionic Greek.

The chemical and geological properties of Lori's earth pigments.
How ancient Greek painters like Apelles utilized earth pigments.
The history of the Pontic Greek communities still living in the Lori province today.

AI responses may include mistakes.

[1] https://www.naturalpigments.com/armenian-purple-ocher-pigment.html

[2] https://www.naturalpigments.com/artist-materials/purple-ocher-paint

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ochre

[4] https://www.naturalpigments.eu/artist-materials/purple-ocher-paint

[5] https://www.matisse.com.au/colours-sizes/armenian-lori-violet-light

[6] https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180801-tyrian-purple-the-regal-colour-taken-from-mollusc-mucus

[7] https://www.royaltalens.com/blogs/colour-stories/ochre

[8] https://www.advantour.com/armenia/lori.htm

[9] https://archaeopresspublishing.com/ojs/index.php/aramazd/article/view/1828

[10] https://armenpress.am/en/article/919102

[11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lori_Province