murex

American  

[myoor-eks] / ˈmyʊər ɛks /

noun

plural

murices, murexes

1. any marine gastropod of the genus Murex, common in tropical seas, certain species of which yield the royal purple dye valued by the ancients.

2. a shell used as a trumpet, as in representations of Tritons in art.

3. purplish red.

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murex British  

/ ˈmjʊərɛks /

noun

1. any of various spiny-shelled marine gastropods of the genus Murex and related genera: formerly used as a source of the dye Tyrian purple

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Etymology

Origin of murex

1580–90; < New Latin, Latin mūrex the shellfish that yielded Tyrian purple dye

Example Sentences

Years later, he noticed a dead murex on the beach and recalling his history classes decided to experiment with ways of making the dye.

From Reuters • Feb. 8, 2022

As the centuries passed, the secret of turning murex into Tyrian dye was gradually lost until a few enthusiasts started trying to recreate the formula.

From Reuters • Feb. 8, 2022

The biocide paint tributyltin, known as TBT, protected Shell tankers from accruing algae, barnacles and mussels, but it also caused female murex mollusks to change their gender, impairing their ability to spawn.

From Washington Post • Jul. 28, 2021

Finds there include a workshop that produced royal purple and blue dye from murex snails and a fifth-century synagogue, the first archaeological evidence of Jewish life in Christian Lycia.

From New York Times • Jan. 7, 2013

Mazes in the nodules on murex shells and in the textures of sycamore bark and inside the hollow bones of eagles.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr