Goats, Falu red , American barns and mummies

[packman]

According to legend, there was once a goat named Kåre who lived with his shepherd boy in rural Sweden. One day, Kåre returned home with his horns stained a bright, mineral red. Instead of being frightened by his newly Baphomet-looking livestock, the boy summoned all his entrepreneurial impulses and set to work figuring out how he could make money from this occurrence. His goat had fallen headfirst into a pile of earthly riches, discovering a patch of copper-laden land, russet soil and dusty yellow stones.

This site would become the famous copper mines of Falun, the source of much of Sweden’s wealth throughout the Middle Ages and the reason we have the term “barn red,” for it was here that Swedes discovered the preserving and protective properties of copper, iron ochre, silica, and zinc. Mixed with linseed oil, these minerals became a deep warm red paint, which was applied to the sides of houses and barns throughout Scandinavia and later, the east coast of America.

More of the interesting history of that barn red color:

https://www.theawl.com/2017/12/falu-red-the-color-of-bucolic-barns-and-mummified-swedes/

[MuseRider]

1. My barns are metal, silver colored

but my house, that looks like a barn, is Barn Red. I never knew this. Barns all over the Midwest were red when I was growing up. I had no idea the history of this nor did I know it came from a mix that was protective, somehow I doubt that is still the case.

Thanks for this! I will read the rest later, off to the barns.....it is COLD out here.