mordanted

Updated: July 21, 2026

We should first soak the piece of cotton in a solution of tannic acid, and then pass it into a solution, say, of tartar emetic, when the tannic acid will be firmly fixed, as tannate of antimony, on the cotton. We then dip the mordanted piece of cotton into the colour bath, containing, for instance, Magenta, and it is dyed a fine red, composed of a tannate of antimony and Magenta.

Watson Smith - The Chemistry of Hat Manufacturing: Lectures Delivered Before the Hat Manufacturers' Association