The Dyeing of Purple in Ancient Israel 25 



(6) The second element offers considerable difficulty. From 

 the s])orcadic fdlusioiis to the nature and characteristics of fishes 

 it is exceedingly difficult to evolve a clear idea of the type ' dag " 

 (fish) in the Talmudic conception, though one gains the impres- 

 sion that it does not materially differ from the modern conception 

 of the term fish. Seeing, however, .that on the one hand the 

 Gastropoda and Cephalopoda are probably included in the term 

 " dag " as used by Maimonides, and that the tekelet species is 

 described by him as " dag," we are led to think that the 

 characteristic (6) in the Talmud description does not exclude 

 these classes of marine snails. 



(c) The last point in the descr'iption also offers certain diffi- 

 culties. Science knows nothing of a comet-like septuagenarian 

 appearance of any of the denizens of the sea. In realitj'^, how- 

 ever, " once in seventy years " is a hyperbolic expression. It 

 amounts to saying that the species is caught at long intervals 

 of time. 



Murex trunculus fails to satisfy characteristics (a) and (c) 

 of the Talmud. A serious difficulty in the way of the 

 identification with Murex trimcidus is also offered by the fact 

 that the dye furnished by the latter is of a fugitive nature, while 

 tekelet, as we know from the Talmud, was exceedingly fast. 

 This difficulty can partly be met by the consideration that the 

 tekelet dye used to be mixed with certain drugs, not specified in 

 the Talmud. They may have served as stiptics for the purpose 

 of endowing the colour with the quality of durability and 

 fastness, but I do not think this very probable. 



If for the present all hope is to be abandoned of rediscover- 

 ing the tekelet species among the members of the genera Murex 

 and Purpura, it might not be amiss to look for the same within 

 the confines of the genus Janthina. The two species of this 

 genus that live in the Mediterranean are /. pallida, Harvey, and 

 /. prolongata, Blainville. These furnish a blue colouring fluid 

 playing into violet. They live in the high seas, at the surface, 

 and their colour is of a beautiful violet blue, which might easily 



