Nabk: Cultivators and Processors of Madder-Root

Date: c. 1840

Madder-root, or Rubia Tinctorum, is a vegetable red dye suitable for colouring leather, wool, cotton, and silk. Sir John Bowring (d. 1872) noted that Nebk (Nabk) was the greatest producer of madder-root. The plant is common across Syria and does not require intensive cultivation. See also: Dyer and Textile Printer; Tanner.

Citation: Bowring, John. Report on the Commercial Statistics of Syria (London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1840. Reprinted: New York: Arno Press, 1973), p. 17.