John Motion Coats Laboratory notebook of dye recipes

Collection

Identifier: MSS 0097-Item 0171

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

John Motion created this book of dye recipes in 1891. Motion recorded recipes for various dyestuffs and often included samples showing a dye’s effect on cotton and wool thread or fabric.

Most recipes include a description of the mordant (the substance that fixes the dyestuff to a material), the dyestuff solution, and the dyebath, as well as directions for heating solutions and the length of time needed for each step of the process.

In addition to recipes for natural dyes, such as fustic, logwood, and sumac, Motion also included recipes for synthetic dyes. These experiments begin on page 30. Some of these synthetic dyes are named after their chemical composition, such as Benzo-purpurine, but others reference contemporary culture, including “Victoria Blue,” “Bismark Brown,” and “Mikado Orange.” Motion sometimes included the chemical formulae for the dyestuffs described.

The manuscript is a quarto with a sheepskin cover over a paper binding. The book consists of 57 pages of writing in ink on lined paper and 13 blank pages. It contains 132 samples of dyed thread and fabric swatches. The spine is rubbed and the tail of the spine is broken. It has marbled endpapers and flyleaves. It includes the original stationer’s ticket “McCorquodale & Co., Ltd. Glasgow” on the front endpaper. The first page is signed “John Motion, Coats’ Laboratory, 19th Feb. 91.” John Motion’s rubber stamp signature is on the facing page.

Dates

Creation: 1891

Creator

Motion, John (Person)

Language of Materials

Materials entirely in English.

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections, University of Delaware Library, https://library.udel.edu/spec/askspec/

Biographical and Historical Note

John Motion worked in the Coats Thread Company laboratory, which was probably located in Scotland. He created this book of dyestuff recipes and textile samples in 1891.

Founded by James Coats in 1826 in Paisley, Scotland, the Coats Thread Company merged with the Clark Thread Company in 1896 to become Coats & Clark. Both concerns had selling agents in the United States by the 1840s and established American-based thread manufactories in the 1860s.

Make It Coats company website, “History and Heritage” (accessed September 13, 2016) http://www.makeitcoats.com/en-us/about/historyandheritage Coats & Clark company website, “The History of Coats & Clark” (accessed August 29, 2004) http://www.coatsandclark.com/our_company/history.htm Information derived from the collection.