Historical Overview

Historically colour has influenced man from ancient times, early civilisations used colour for ceremony, healing, religious purposes and rights of passage. It is believed that this healing art dates back to pre-Atlantean times. We know the ancient Greeks and Egyptians used coloured temples as treatment centres. Colour has played its part successfully in all cultures.

Ancient man was occupied by his physical surroundings & survival, taking colour directly from the earth in the form of crushed stones & minerals. Cave paintings were created using red, yellow, brown & black; symbolically these colours can be attributed to our basic instincts & the grounding of our physical energies. Instinctively ancient man created paintings in these colours to bring energy to their next hunt & continue their physical existence.

Thousands of years later in Ancient Egypt man worshipped the sun, the divine source of all life, light & warmth. In the ancient city of Hepliopolis the sun god was worshipped in many guises; Kephri the rising sun, Horakhty the mid-day sun, Horous of the horizon, and Atum the setting sun.

The temple of Heliopolis had a quartz crystal in the dome that split sunlight into the seven prismatic colours of the spectrum. These coloured rays of light filled seven healing chambers where people received colour healing; herbs, dyes & coloured minerals were also used. Egyptians recognised the therapeutic benefits of wearing coloured gemstones & crystals. They believed that certain coloured stones would protect them from unwamted energies or attract good luck & prosperity.

Ancient Egyptians understood the relationship of form, colour & sound. The two colossal statues of Mammon in the valley of the Nile gave out a sound every morning to greet the sun. Today the statues have become so weathered that the original form is lost so there is now no sound.

Archaeologists discovered numerous surgical & medical works including the Ebers Paprus dating back to 1500BC. The ancient manuscript is beautifully preserved & unrolls to 20 metres in length, compriing of various medical prescriptions some of which are still in use today.

The seventh century Arab physician Avicenna wrote the book titled 'The Canon' and developed a colour chart detailing many uses. It made references to the effects primary colours can have on an individual. One discovery found that red stimulates the blood and blue cools it.

In 1958 the US scientist Robert Gerard proved that red light could raise blood pressure and blue light could lower it.

In 1810 the German philosopher Goethe published his scientific and esoteric thoughts on colour in Die Farben Lehre (The Teachings of Colour). This influenced many people including the artist Turner. During the 19th century several studies were performed to prove the healing qualities of colour and light, research continues today.