dyeing linen

[Lepidina]

However I could be wrong and the example you mention may indeed have been based on original paint surviving on the monument. The versions I have seen do not mention what the reconstruction is based on. If it is based on original paint from this monument then in that case we have a senior officer wearing what is considered to be by textile experts a rare and expensive colour. By shade of green I mean a very pale green effect might be achieved by single dyeing but the darker greens which is what you see in these cases and in this example would appear to have been at least double dyed and therefore more expensive. This is certainly something I would include in future editions of RMD but I would want more verification than the fact that it appears in a museum or on a website first.

By more expensive, is there primary source evidence for this like sales receipts or inventory lists either for purchase of the garments or purchase of the dye stuffs? Or are people assuming that it is more expensive because it might take 2 dye baths? Some dye stuffs require multiple baths through mordanting and dyeing so double dipping to get a certain color is not that much more effort in the grand scheme of things. I doubt it would increase the price so it was out of the range of the average person. It might be just expensive enough to not be used as every day clothing or certainly work clothing, which is why you don't see it that often.

Or is green paint hard to do and that's why you don't see it painted very often? Just throwing out some ideas there.