Uploaded August 2017 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Now widely polled as the most popular color in the world, there was a time in which there was no blue -- at least not the way we see blue now. Sure, the sky and water haven’t changed colors, but without the ability to easily create blue dye or pigments, we had no use for the word “blue.”
And it turns out that we need words to identify, think, and talk about things for them to exist in our minds. Journey with Kevin as he tells the strange story of how humans discovered the color blue, which existed right in front of them the whole time.
The deeper the blue becomes, the more strongly it calls man towards the infinite, awakening in him a desire for the pure and, finally, for the supernatural... The brighter it becomes, the more it loses its sound, until it turns into silent stillness and becomes white.
-Wassily Kandinsky
Curiosity Box: curiositybox.com
Written, Produced, Edited and Hosted by Kevin Lieber
Instagram: instagram.com/kevlieber
Twitter: twitter.com/kevinlieber
Website: kevinlieber.com
Contributing Researcher & Editor Matthew Tabor, Koala Fight Media
http://koala.fm/
VFX by Eric Langlay
youtube.com/c/ericlanglay
Select Music by Jake Chudnow
youtube.com/user/jakechudnow
Special Thanks Paula Lieber
twitter.com/pixichuu
Vsauce2 Links
Twitter: twitter.com/VsauceTwo
Facebook: facebook.com/VsauceTwo
Website: Vsauce.com
**** LINKS AND SOURCES ****
The Brilliant History of Color in Art by Victoria Finlay
amazon.com/Brilliant-History-Color-Art/dp/1606064290
Blue: The History Of A Color by Michel Pastoureau
amazon.com/Blue-History-Color-Michel-Pastoureau/dp/0691090505
Secret Language Of Color by Joann Eckstut and Arielle Eckstut
amazon.com/Secret-Language-Color-Science-History/dp/1579129498
SPECIAL THANKS
Virginia Postrel
vpostrel.com
amazon.com/Substance-Style-Aesthetic-Remaking-Consciousness/dp/0060933852
Victoria Finlay
victoriafinlay.com
Joshua J. Mark
http://www.ancient.eu/user/JPryst/
Kidmograph
kidmograph.com
Outro Song “I Came Back For You” by Trevor Something
trevorsomething.bandcamp.com/album/soulless-computer-boy-and-the-eternal-render
ARTICLES
Pigments Through The Ages
goo.gl/ytfGV3
goo.gl/D6nwMs
Color In Art
goo.gl/4Bu7pD
Harvard Color Vault
goo.gl/Q86ixm
goo.gl/Y43xCb
Little Snow White
goo.gl/Lsm8Xt
A Story Of Blue
goo.gl/4GsVFB
The Material History of the Color Blue
goo.gl/TT5vMS
True Blue Stands Out in an Earthy Crowd by Natalie Angier
goo.gl/wiFy7g
Why Is The Sky Blue?
goo.gl/KzoAcb
Blue Through The Centuries
goo.gl/Eh2og1
History Of Blue
goo.gl/pq5BDC
William Gladstone And The Odyssey
goo.gl/J8dDD5
No One Could See The Color Blue Until Modern Times by Kevin Loria
goo.gl/tUqph6
Why Is Blue The World’s Favorite Color?
goo.gl/GkoLyg
It’s Not Easy Being Blue (For Plants) by Eric Dillalogue
goo.gl/h763Hq
Color Wavelengths
goo.gl/3D67Lw
The Science Of Blue Flowers
goo.gl/N74ySm
First Blue-Eyed Human
goo.gl/B5gYsw
Humanity’s Favorite Color
goo.gl/Kzef6s
Color In Market Research
goo.gl/TsaMcs
What’s Your Favorite Color?
goo.gl/eEJW9K
Islamic Poetry
goo.gl/zAEYMm
Starry Night, Edvard Munch
goo.gl/HVsZ24
goo.gl/9Tyjpt
Newton And The Color Spectrum
goo.gl/Hg5omA
Blue And Green Language Distinctions
goo.gl/aCk9NQ
Rainbows In Art
goo.gl/AXwkCD
True Origin Of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
goo.gl/QrYZuB
STUDIES
Russian Blues Reveal Effects Of Language On Color Discrimination
goo.gl/CQHWHn
Ancient Color Categories
goo.gl/EQgLE4
Philip Cohen
goo.gl/f77dzZ
Scott Design Inc. Color Poll
goo.gl/dHGt6p
ASSETS
Namakura Gatana 1917 restoration by sumerias1
goo.gl/uBFKro
Egyptian Blue Eye at The J. Paul Getty Museum
goo.gl/KvC6N1
Indigo by Shisha-Tom
goo.gl/zmekJX
Archaemenid Bowl from David Aaron
goo.gl/9ZzXVX
Lapis Lazuli Eyes photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen
goo.gl/rTCJj8
Lapis Lazuli Buddha
goo.gl/uUYpfw
goo.gl/zopx9g
goo.gl/yxiYpo
CSIC
goo.gl/TX7P3r
Indus Valley Diorama by Biswarup Ganguly
goo.gl/GzS4U6
Rainbows
goo.gl/w8LFVk
goo.gl/mf5Dce
Denim by Nikodem Nijaki
goo.gl/jBqbsH
Blue Cat The British Museum
goo.gl/N8pwiW
Woad by H. Zell
goo.gl/mXuryL
Lazurite by Didier Descouens
goo.gl/RLQd3w
Cochineal by Dick Culbert
goo.gl/ejkzc3
Cochineal by H. Zell
goo.gl/Whkh8x
Portrait of Edvard Munch from National Library of Norway
goo.gl/DBUoz6
goo.gl/GQAJF8
Tekhelet by Mnavon
goo.gl/eY94C6
Pixabay
pixabay.com
Now widely polled as the most popular color in the world, there was a time in which there was no blue -- at least not the way we see blue now. Sure, the sky and water haven’t changed colors, but without the ability to easily create blue dye or pigments, we had no use for the word “blue.”
And it turns out that we need words to identify, think, and talk about things for them to exist in our minds. Journey with Kevin as he tells the strange story of how humans discovered the color blue, which existed right in front of them the whole time.
The deeper the blue becomes, the more strongly it calls man towards the infinite, awakening in him a desire for the pure and, finally, for the supernatural... The brighter it becomes, the more it loses its sound, until it turns into silent stillness and becomes white.
-Wassily Kandinsky
Curiosity Box: curiositybox.com
Written, Produced, Edited and Hosted by Kevin Lieber
Instagram: instagram.com/kevlieber
Twitter: twitter.com/kevinlieber
Website: kevinlieber.com
Contributing Researcher & Editor Matthew Tabor, Koala Fight Media
http://koala.fm/
VFX by Eric Langlay
youtube.com/c/ericlanglay
Select Music by Jake Chudnow
youtube.com/user/jakechudnow
Special Thanks Paula Lieber
twitter.com/pixichuu
Vsauce2 Links
Twitter: twitter.com/VsauceTwo
Facebook: facebook.com/VsauceTwo
Website: Vsauce.com
**** LINKS AND SOURCES ****
The Brilliant History of Color in Art by Victoria Finlay
amazon.com/Brilliant-History-Color-Art/dp/1606064290
Blue: The History Of A Color by Michel Pastoureau
amazon.com/Blue-History-Color-Michel-Pastoureau/dp/0691090505
Secret Language Of Color by Joann Eckstut and Arielle Eckstut
amazon.com/Secret-Language-Color-Science-History/dp/1579129498
SPECIAL THANKS
Virginia Postrel
vpostrel.com
amazon.com/Substance-Style-Aesthetic-Remaking-Consciousness/dp/0060933852
Victoria Finlay
victoriafinlay.com
Joshua J. Mark
http://www.ancient.eu/user/JPryst/
Kidmograph
kidmograph.com
Outro Song “I Came Back For You” by Trevor Something
trevorsomething.bandcamp.com/album/soulless-computer-boy-and-the-eternal-render
ARTICLES
Pigments Through The Ages
goo.gl/ytfGV3
goo.gl/D6nwMs
Color In Art
goo.gl/4Bu7pD
Harvard Color Vault
goo.gl/Q86ixm
goo.gl/Y43xCb
Little Snow White
goo.gl/Lsm8Xt
A Story Of Blue
goo.gl/4GsVFB
The Material History of the Color Blue
goo.gl/TT5vMS
True Blue Stands Out in an Earthy Crowd by Natalie Angier
goo.gl/wiFy7g
Why Is The Sky Blue?
goo.gl/KzoAcb
Blue Through The Centuries
goo.gl/Eh2og1
History Of Blue
goo.gl/pq5BDC
William Gladstone And The Odyssey
goo.gl/J8dDD5
No One Could See The Color Blue Until Modern Times by Kevin Loria
goo.gl/tUqph6
Why Is Blue The World’s Favorite Color?
goo.gl/GkoLyg
It’s Not Easy Being Blue (For Plants) by Eric Dillalogue
goo.gl/h763Hq
Color Wavelengths
goo.gl/3D67Lw
The Science Of Blue Flowers
goo.gl/N74ySm
First Blue-Eyed Human
goo.gl/B5gYsw
Humanity’s Favorite Color
goo.gl/Kzef6s
Color In Market Research
goo.gl/TsaMcs
What’s Your Favorite Color?
goo.gl/eEJW9K
Islamic Poetry
goo.gl/zAEYMm
Starry Night, Edvard Munch
goo.gl/HVsZ24
goo.gl/9Tyjpt
Newton And The Color Spectrum
goo.gl/Hg5omA
Blue And Green Language Distinctions
goo.gl/aCk9NQ
Rainbows In Art
goo.gl/AXwkCD
True Origin Of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
goo.gl/QrYZuB
STUDIES
Russian Blues Reveal Effects Of Language On Color Discrimination
goo.gl/CQHWHn
Ancient Color Categories
goo.gl/EQgLE4
Philip Cohen
goo.gl/f77dzZ
Scott Design Inc. Color Poll
goo.gl/dHGt6p
ASSETS
Namakura Gatana 1917 restoration by sumerias1
goo.gl/uBFKro
Egyptian Blue Eye at The J. Paul Getty Museum
goo.gl/KvC6N1
Indigo by Shisha-Tom
goo.gl/zmekJX
Archaemenid Bowl from David Aaron
goo.gl/9ZzXVX
Lapis Lazuli Eyes photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen
goo.gl/rTCJj8
Lapis Lazuli Buddha
goo.gl/uUYpfw
goo.gl/zopx9g
goo.gl/yxiYpo
CSIC
goo.gl/TX7P3r
Indus Valley Diorama by Biswarup Ganguly
goo.gl/GzS4U6
Rainbows
goo.gl/w8LFVk
goo.gl/mf5Dce
Denim by Nikodem Nijaki
goo.gl/jBqbsH
Blue Cat The British Museum
goo.gl/N8pwiW
Woad by H. Zell
goo.gl/mXuryL
Lazurite by Didier Descouens
goo.gl/RLQd3w
Cochineal by Dick Culbert
goo.gl/ejkzc3
Cochineal by H. Zell
goo.gl/Whkh8x
Portrait of Edvard Munch from National Library of Norway
goo.gl/DBUoz6
goo.gl/GQAJF8
Tekhelet by Mnavon
goo.gl/eY94C6
Pixabay
pixabay.com
