Murex brandaris
E640077
Murex brandaris is a Mediterranean sea snail species historically renowned as the primary source of the rare and prestigious Tyrian purple dye used in ancient royal garments.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Murex trunculus | 1 |
Statements (49)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
marine mollusk
ⓘ
sea snail ⓘ species of gastropod ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
ancient Phoenician dye industry
ⓘ
royal purple garments ⓘ |
| authority | Linnaeus, 1758 NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| belongsTo | subfamily Muricinae NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| class | Gastropoda ⓘ |
| commonName |
banded dye-murex
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
spiny dye-murex ⓘ |
| conservationStatus | not globally evaluated by IUCN (as of 2024) ⓘ |
| culturalSignificance | source of prestigious purple dye in antiquity ⓘ |
| diet |
bivalves
ⓘ
other mollusks ⓘ |
| distribution | eastern Atlantic Ocean coasts near the Mediterranean ⓘ |
| domain |
Eukarya
ⓘ
surface form:
Eukaryota
|
| dyeColor |
deep violet
ⓘ
reddish-purple ⓘ |
| dyeComponent | brominated indigoid compounds ⓘ |
| ecologicalRole | predator of other invertebrates ⓘ |
| family | Muricidae NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| feedingType | carnivorous ⓘ |
| foundIn | shallow subtidal zones ⓘ |
| genus | Murex NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| habitat |
marine coastal waters
ⓘ
rocky substrates ⓘ sandy substrates ⓘ |
| hasShell | yes ⓘ |
| hasSynonym | Bolinus brandaris NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| historicallyUsedFor | production of Tyrian purple ⓘ |
| kingdom | Animalia ⓘ |
| livesIn | benthic zone ⓘ |
| maximumShellLength | approximately 10 cm ⓘ |
| nativeTo | Mediterranean Sea NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| order | Neogastropoda NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| parentTaxon | Murex NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| phylum | Mollusca NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| produces | Tyrian purple dye precursor ⓘ |
| reproduction | lays egg capsules ⓘ |
| secretes | mucus from hypobranchial gland used for purple dye ⓘ |
| shellCharacteristic |
elongated shell
ⓘ
spiny shell ⓘ varices with spines ⓘ |
| shellColor | generally brownish with lighter bands ⓘ |
| taxonRank | species ⓘ |
| usedBy |
Greeks
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Phoenicians NERFINISHED ⓘ Romans NERFINISHED ⓘ ancient Mediterranean civilizations ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
Murex trunculus