Black color was of great importance at the dawn of mankind and was repeatedly considered the color of everything dark, evil and suspicious.
Be that as it may, mankind has found countless other meanings for color, and many parts of the world give it a positive meaning.
Take the journey with us as we uncover all of the deepest and darkest facts about black.
1. Scientifically speaking, black is not a color at all - it is what you get when visible light is completely absent or absorbed.
2. Black is achromatic, like white and grey. This means that it has no tint.
3. Because true black does not exist, all "black" pigments and dyes actually just look black. They are made up of a combination of other pigments in specific combinations to reflect as little light as possible.
4. It was one of the first colors that people used to create works of art. Charcoal was first used to create the base color, while fired bones and ground manganese powder were used for the darker black pigment.
5. In ancient Egypt, black was used in a positive light, as it was the color of the rich soil of the Nile and was therefore associated with fertility. It was also the color of Anubis, the Egyptian god of the underworld who protected the dead from evil.
6. Craftsmen and craftsmen in ancient Rome wore black, most likely because it easily hid dirt and grime from working in such jobs. The natural black dyes used were not very strong, so their clothes often turned brown or grey.
7. Black was also the color of mourning in the Roman Empire, with the family of the deceased changing their black togas (called toga pulla) to white only after a period of mourning.
8. Just as white has come to represent all that is good and holy, black is associated with evil and darkness. In Christianity, for example, the devil has been depicted with black skin since at least the Middle Ages.
9. Black has been used as a color of power and authority since the 13th century, when judges and other court officials began to wear the color.
10. Most of the world's police officers wore black until the 20th century. Blue replaced it to make the police look less threatening to the general public.
11. Black was fully adopted by the fascists, starting with Benito Mussolini's Blackshirts, the Italian fascist paramilitaries. It was later adopted by Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany and was worn by the infamous SS.
12. The black color has an important symbolic meaning for Muslims, as it is believed that it was the color of the banner carried by the soldiers of the Prophet Muhammad.
13. Priests and monks from many different Christian denominations wear black robes, as they believe that this color symbolizes repentance and humility.
14. On the other hand, black has completely different meanings in paganism, such as protection, stability, strength and dignity.
15. Black panthers are not a separate species. In fact, they are jaguars or leopards with recessive genes that give the animals an excess of melanin that makes their coat black. If you look closely, their fur still has its distinctive markings.
16. The first production Ford Model T was available exclusively in black for the first eight years of production.
While some of the worst people in history have used black to represent themselves, it seems that this color always finds a way to stay in style. There is just something about it that attracts.
Black is something like a primary color: during the day we can see a wide variety of colors, but when we look at the night sky, almost everything we see is black.