Bengala Dye

A pigment dyeing technique that uses finely crushed iron oxide as the main ingredient and rubs it into the fabric with a small amount of water to fix it. There are three colours: red, yellow, and black, depending on the firing temperature, and a wide range of colours can be created by combining these colours or using titanium oxide (white). Since it uses natural minerals and does not require heating or large amounts of water, it is considered to be an energy-saving and relatively environmentally friendly method. MITTAN’s products often use natural rubber to fix the pigment, which is resistant to ultraviolet rays and does not fade easily in sunlight. On the other hand, a unique property of pigment dyeing is that the colour tends to fade due to friction.

This dye is called “Bengara” in Japan, and the origin of the word is said to come from the Bengal region of India, which was once the main production area of red iron-oxide pigment. In addition to cloth, it has been used in a wide range of fields since ancient times, such as pottery, lacquerware, and architectural finishes.