
1000-year-old mystery solved:Unlocking the molecular structure for medieval blue - bookofjoe
https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/16/eaaz7772
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fuzzfactor
P. Nabais, J. Oliveira, F. Pina, N. Teixeira, V. de Freitas, N. F. Brás, A.
Clemente, M. Rangel, A. M. S.

>The molecular structure of the medieval watercolor known as folium has
finally been solved in the 21st century. The interdisciplinary approach taken
was the key

>following medieval instructions

>multi-analytical characterization of its structure was made using HPLC-DAD-
MS, GC-MS, NMR (1H, 13C, COSY, HSQC, HMBC, INADEQUATE), and computational
studies.

Sometimes that's what it takes to build some momentum with technical
innovations over a millennium.

But then you can come up with conclusions like this:

>In conclusion, chrozophoridin was used in ancient times to make a beautiful
blue dye for painting, and it is neither an anthocyanin — found in many blue
flowers and fruits — nor indigo, the most stable natural blue dye. It turns
out to be in a class of its own. Thus, we believe that this will be not our
final word on this amazing plant and its story and that further discoveries
will follow soon.

I like that last part,

>this will be not our final word

>further discoveries will follow soon.

That's the kind of confidence and momentum too few workers will ever achieve,
and in this case looks scientifically legitimate to me.

