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Let's make some medieval lye (la lye, lye la lye la lye la lye 🎵). Lye is also known as potash or lixivium. It's a strong alkali and the basic ingredient of soap. Yes, the medievals washed! #teachingmanuscripts #medievalpigments 
Lye is completely natural and once again nature is completely AMAZING. A big lovely tree sucks up all the nutrients from the soil through its roots (including potassium). Big lovely tree gets cut down and used for firewood 🙁
The wood all burns away and leaves nothing but ashes. BUT - the ashes contain lots of alkali-rich things like potassium and calcium carbonate. You know what's good for getting things clean? Alkali-rich things! (The word alkali comes from the Arabic al-qaly, which means ashes)
