An example of a historically hard to produce dye would be Tyrian purple, harvested from the secretions of snails found in the Mediterranean Sea. It took thousands of snails to make even a few grams of the dye.

During the Middle Ages not everyone had access to a wide range of dyes. Only the most wealthy and most influential could afford to have their garments made in certain colours.

The availability of dyes led to colours being attributed to different classes. Blue dyes were commonly available and were indicative of common people. While red was the colour of nobility.