garance

Garance is the common French name for Rubia tinctorum, known in English as dyer's madder. The plant's roots have long been used to produce red dyes for textiles and, historically, for artists' pigments. The term garance can refer to the dye itself as well as to the color shade derived from it.

The word garance is native to French usage since medieval times, denoting both the plant and its dye. The exact linguistic origin is uncertain, but it became established in early modern European dyeing vocabulary.

Rubia tinctorum is a hardy perennial that forms extensive root systems. It is cultivated in temperate regions, especially around the Mediterranean and central Europe. Roots are harvested in autumn, dried, and prepared for dye extraction.

The dye is obtained by boiling the roots; when used with mordants such as alum or tin, it yields red shades ranging from bright red to deep crimson. Natural madder contains alizarin and purpurin; in the late 19th century, synthetic alizarin largely replaced the natural dye.

Garance played a key role in traditional textile industries (wool, silk) and in historical painting pigments, where madder-based colors were used for centuries. Today, the plant and its dye persist mainly in artisanal dyeing and historical studies.