Researchers Identify the Oldest Blue Pigment Found in Europe

The color blue has a long, elusive history often due to its rarity in nature and sometimes toxic qualities.Analyzing a stone from the Paleolithic site Mühlheim-Dietesheim in Germany, however, researchers identified the earliest known use of blue mineral pigment in Europe. The results of the study, published in the journal Antiquity, offer new insights into early prehistoric use of the color.As part of the study, experts examined traces of blue residue found by archaeologists on a rough