Why is purple the Royal Color?

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Tyrian purple was said to resemble the color of clotted blood. This carried divine connotations. For this reason, it was more desirable among rulers and nobility. Clothes made from Tyrian purple were exorbitantly expensive. Making just one ounce meant the milking or crushing of 250,000 Murex sea shells which secreted the purple-producing mucus. A pound of purple cost more than most made in a year. Phoenicians and Roman Emperors favored the color. Queen Elizabeth I forbid others from wearing purple. Only those close members of the royal family were allowed. In the 1850's with the advent of synthetic materials the color became more readily available and more were able to obtain it. The picture is from the wallpaper cave.