Throughout history, the rich and powerful have attempted to control access to items considered luxurious or status symbols. Today, this is done through marketing and price setting (a prominent example is the strict control of the number of diamonds allowed to enter the global market). In previous eras, however, consumption could be directly regulated through the passage of sumptuary laws.
These laws forbade ordinary citizens from obtaining food, clothing, or goods made of a particular material in order to reinforce social hierarchies. Sumptuary laws were also passed by religious institutions in order to prevent temptation and ensure moral behavior. Laws that regulate consumption have been passed throughout human civilization and continue to exist in the modern world (even in the United States).
The Law that Led to Roman Honor Killings, and Other Extreme Roman Marriage Laws Luxurious Roman Villa On Display Under Lavish Modern Apartment Block The Law on Tyrian Purple The classic example of a sumptuary law is the ancient Roman prohibition on wearing clothing that was Tyrian purple . The vibrant color could only be made from a dye extracted from shellfish and was incredibly difficult to manufacture. Tyrian purple dye was made by the Phoenicians , particularly those of Carthage .
The two shellfish that produced the color ( the Purpura pelagia or Murex trunculus and Murex brandaris as well as the Purfura lapillus or Buccinum lapillus ) were native to the eastern Mediterranean shore.