Born to the Purple Reading Answers

Jul 5, 2025

Born to the Purple Reading Answers is an academic reading answers topic. Born to the Purple Reading Answers has a total of 13 IELTS questions in total. It includes questions such as choosing the most suitable headings for paragraphs B — F from the list of headings below, choosing the appropriate letters A — D, and choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

The IELTS Reading section is an essential part of the test that evaluates a candidate's comprehension and analysis of various passage types. You will work through a number of IELTS reading practice problems in this section that resemble actual test situations. These questions are designed to help you improve your ability to recognise essential concepts, extract particular facts, and make inferences. Practising these IELTS reading problems can help you get comfortable with the structure and increase your confidence for the exam, regardless of whether you are studying for the Academic or General Training module.

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Section 1 BORN TO THE PURPLE

A.Dyeing is a process of colouring materials, or cloth fibers, whereby the colour becomes part of the fiber. The fastness of the colour, or its permanency, depends upon the dye and the process used. True dyeing is a permanent colour change, and the dye is absorbed by, or chemically combined with, the fiber.

B.In ancient times all the dyes used were natural; actually, this was true up until mid-1800. The dyestuffs come from a variety of natural sources, some commonly available, others rare or difficult to produce. Some of the common dyes included logwood or quercitron, fustic, woad, and indigo. An example of the rare dyes would be cochineal and Tyrian purple. Collectively, these substances are called dyestuffs and were occasionally traded as a commodity. The dyestuffs were extracts from plants, mollusks, insects, woods, or naturally occurring minerals. There are many plants which produce dye suitable in the dyeing process, and many were heavily cultivated. Madder and woad were grown in Europe specifically for their dyeing properties, Saffron was also extensively grown in Anatolia for its yellow dye. Probably one of the most famous dyes was Tyrian purple, from a Mediterranean shellfish. The Phoenicians of Tyre, in Lebanon, produced this very expensive dye long before written history began. Many other areas had special dyes which were famous in antiquity.

C.The value of a dye is not just its availability, but also its fastness or durability against daily use. It must withstand washing, wearing, sunlight, perspiration, without losing an appreciable amount of its colour. The colour, and its brightness, also helped determine the dye's value. Premium colours were purple, blue, and bright shades of red.

D.There are two classifications of dyeing, the home craft and the trade, or industrial, dyeing. The manufacturing of clothing, the spinning, weaving and embroidery, tended to stay within the family unit. An exception to this would be the carpets made in Anatolia and Persia, for example. or the very fine sheer linen woven in Egypt. But the manufacture of dyes and their use in dyeing yarn and cloth soon became an industry, supporting large numbers of people, even entire cities. The art of dyeing was one of the earliest arts known to man after he became civilized. Trade dyeing was, however, a highly competitive business. These were the professionals of the ancient world when it came to dyed cloth. Many of the processes were closely guarded secrets, and many of the special skills were handed down over generations. The ingredients may come from far away; the tools may be specialized and the process often was steeped in superstition.

E.As far as man can historically see, rulers have set themselves apart from everyone else by wearing exotic and rare items, and dyed clothing was very early a part of this status proclamation. Still today the important and the wealthy prefer to wear items not available to all. In Egypt, the pharaohs wore specially made clothing, dyed with colours difficult to obtain. Dyed fabrics from tombs of early Egyptian attest to the antiquity of the dyers art.

F.In the ancient Greek and Roman world. Tyrian purple became the colour of choice for rulers and emperors. The dye was extremely expensive, therefore, available to only a few. When in later times merchants, considered unimportant, became wealthy enough to buy purple-dyed cloth, laws were passed to prevent their diluting the impressiveness of the colour. Only rulers, or emperors, were allowed to wear purple. Later, however, the law was changed to include

the rulers' family; then senators; and so on, eventually losing its status. This is where the phrase "born to the purple" came from.

G.The word pigment comes from the Latin "pigmentum” meaning coloured material. Pigments are generally distinguished from dyes or colouring materials on the basis of their soluble ability (solubility) characteristics. Pigments are used mainly in the colouration of paints, printing inks and plastics, although they are used to a certain extent in a much wider range of applications including textiles, ceramics, paper, and cosmetics. In contrast to dyes, pigments are highly insoluble colouring materials, which are incorporated into an applications medium by dispersion, and they remain as discrete solid particles held mechanically within a polymeric matrix. Pigments are thus required to resist dissolving in solvents, which they may contact in application to minimize problems such as 'bleeding' and migration. In addition to solvent resistance, pigments are required to be fast to light, weathering, heat and chemicals such as acids and alkalis to a degree dependent on the demands of particular application. Natural inorganic pigments, derived mainly from mineral sources, have been used as colourants since pre-historic times and a few, notably iron oxides, remain of some significance today. The origins of the synthetic inorganic pigment industry may be traced to the introduction of Prussian blue in the early 18th century, predating the synthetic organic colourant industry by some 150 years. The organic pigments are the oxides, sulfides, hydroxides, silicates, sulfates and carbonates of metals. The colour of a pigment is due to its interactions with light by scattering and absorption. The synthetic organic pigment industry emerged towards the end of the 19th century out of the established synthetic textile dyestuffs industry. Many of the earliest organic pigments were known as 'lakes'. These products were prepared from established water-soluble dyes by precipitation onto an insoluble inorganic substrate. A further significant early development in organic pigments was the introduction of a range of azo pigments. One of the most critical events in the development of the organic pigment industry WOS the discovery in 1928 of copper phtalocyonine blue. This was the first pigment to offer the outstanding intensity and brightness of colour typical of organic pigments, combined with an excellence range of fastness properties, comparable with many inorganic pigments. Organic pigments generally provide higher intensity and brightness of colour than inorganic pigments. However, organic pigments are unable to provide the degree of opacity offered by most inorganic pigments which have the lower reflectance.

Questions 14–18

Choose the most suitable headings for paragraphs B — F from the list of headings below. Write appropriate numbers (-) in boxes 14–18 on your answer sheet.

NB There are more headings than paragraphs, so you will not use them all

List of Headings

i. Clothing symbolising status

ii. The factors determining the dye's quality

iii. The invaluable colour

iv The Importance of Plants in ancient times

v. From family to industry

vi. The value of colours

vii. Dyestuff sources in the past

viii. Availability and durability of a dye

ix. The competitive and secret industry

x. Pigments, insoluble colouring materials

14. Paragraph B

Answer: VII

Supporting statement: dyestuffs come from a variety of natural sources,

Keywords: dyestuffs, natural

Keyword Location: Para B, Line 2

Explanation: The kinds of sources that were earlier utilised to manufacture dye are discussed in paragraph B. Thus, Dyestuff sources in the past is the proper heading for this paragraph.

15. Paragraph C

Answer: II

Supporting statement: The value of a dye is not just its availability, but also its fastness or durability against daily use.

Keywords: availability, durability

Keyword Location: Para C, Line 1

Explanation: In para C, it is stated that a dye's worth is determined by its fastness or durability against regular use, in addition to its availability. Making the heading The factors determining the dye's quality appropriate for the paragraph.

16. Paragraph D

Answer: V

Supporting statement: two classifications of dyeing, the home craft and the trade, or industrial, dyeing.

Keywords: classifications, dyeing

Keyword Location: Para D, Line 1

Explanation: From family to industry is the appropriate heading for paragraph D, as it discusses the two classifications of dyeing, starting from home and ending up at trade.

17. Paragraph E

Answer: I

Supporting statement: dyed clothing was very early a part of this status proclamation. Still today the important and the wealthy prefer to wear items not available to all.

Keywords: status, wealthy

Keyword Location: Para E, Lines 2-3

Explanation: It is implied that paragraph E covers apparel that symbolises status because the wealthy favoured wearing items that were unavailable to the ordinary public.

18. Paragraph F

Answer: III

Supporting statement: The dye was extremely expensive, therefore, available to only a few.

Keywords: extremely, expensive

Keyword Location: Para F, Line 2

Explanation: Paragraph F mentions that the dye was very valuable, making it expensive and available to only a few people.

Question 19-21

Choose the appropriate letters A — D.

19. Among the following dye colours, which one had superior value in the past?

(A) yellow

(B) red

(D) white

Answer: C

Supporting statement: The colour, and its brightness, also helped determine the dye's value. Premium colours were purple, blue, and bright shades of red.

Keywords: brightness, dye

Keyword Location: Para C, Line 3

Explanation: From the text, we know that purple, blue, and various hues of red were the colours that were formerly valued more highly. It can be any shade of red, but not precisely red, as the author is talking about shades of red here, so the colour must be blue.

20. The pharaohs wore specialty dyed clothing, because

(A) it was difficult to obtain.

(B) it was exotic and rare.

(D) it attested to the antiquity of the dyer's art.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: In Egypt, the pharaohs wore specially made clothing, dyed with colours difficult to obtain.

Keywords: Egypt, pharaohs

Keyword Location: Para E, Line 4

Explanation: According to the passage, the pharaohs of Egypt wore uniquely designed garments that were dyed in hard-to-find hues.

21. According to the passage, the phrase "born to the purple— describes someone who

(A) has a royal birth

(B) is very wealthy

(D) was born with silver spoon.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: Only rulers, or emperors, were allowed to wear purple.

Keywords: rulers, emperors

Keyword Location: Para F, Lines 4-5

Explanation: People born into royalty are often referred to as being "born to the purple" or having a royal birth because, initially, only emperors and monarchs were permitted to wear purple.

Questions 22–26

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer

As colouring materials, the distinguished characteristic of pigments is that they are more (22).......... than dyes, and in the colouring process, dyes are (23)..............by the materials, while pigments work by Compared (24)............... with inorganic pigments, organic pigments give colour higher a (25)............... but lower (26)………….

Answe 22r: INSOLUBLE

Supporting statement: Pigments are generally distinguished from dyes or colouring materials on the basis of their soluble ability (solubility) characteristics.

Keywords: soluble, characteristics

Keyword Location: Para G, Lines 2-3

Explanation: According to the text, the dissolving ability (solubility) of pigments is typically what separates them from dyes or colouring materials.

Answer 23: ABSORBED

Supporting statement: True dyeing is a permanent colour change, and the dye is absorbed by, or chemically combined with, the fiber.

Keywords: permanent, chemically

Keyword Location: Para A, Line 3

Explanation: According to the information provided in the text, we can determine that in the process of colouring, dyes are absorbed.

Answer 24: DISPERSION

Supporting statement: In contrast to dyes, pigments are highly insoluble colouring materials, which are incorporated into an applications medium by dispersion,

Keywords: colouring, dispersion

Keyword Location: Para D, Lines 5-6

Explanation: Given that pigments are insoluble colouring agents, their dispersion into another medium is necessary for them to work.

Answer 25: INTENSITY AND BRIGHTNESS

Supporting statement: Organic pigments generally provide higher intensity and brightness of colour than inorganic pigments.

Keywords: Organic, intensity

Keyword Location: Para G, Lines 26-27

Explanation: As given in the text, compared to inorganic pigments, organic pigments often offer more colour intensity and brightness.

Answer 26: OPACITY/ DEGREE OF OPACITY

Supporting statement: However, organic pigments are unable to provide the degree of opacity offered by most inorganic pigments which have the lower reflectance.

Keywords: pigments, opacity

Keyword Location: Para G, Lines 27-28

Explanation: The degree of opacity cannot be provided by the organic pigments. It indicates that its degree of opacity is lower.

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