Dyed textile products and a method of producing them

A dyed textile article treated with tannic acid and dyed with an extract of mycelia or basidiocarps of Ganoderma lucidum. This article is produced by a process comprising contacting a substrate article of cotton, linen, silk or wool first with a pretreating bath containing tannic acid or a natural material containing tannic acid, e.g. gall, then with a mordant bath containing an alumina mordant, such as grass or wood ashes, and finally with the mycelia or basidiocarps of Ganoderma lucidum. This dyed textile article has not only a natural color and feeling, with a sufficient depth of color, but also antimicrobial and antiallergic functions.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to dyed textile articles having a natural and 
unique color tone and feeling, dyed to a deep and fast shade, and having 
antimicrobial and antiallergic properties. The invention further relates 
to a method of producing such dyed textile articles. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
It is long since natural colors were superseded by synthetic dyes but as 
"Kusaki-zome" or herbal dyeing can produce dyed articles with unique 
quiet, exquisite and subtle sheen and handle, natural colors have again 
been receiving due respect in recent years which are epitomized by general 
trends towards favoring naturalness. 
The term "herbal dyeing" inherently means dyeing with plant-derived 
coloring matters. While, actually, a great majority of natural colors are 
of vegetable origin, a broad class of colors including animal dyes, such 
as cochineal and purple of the ancients (secretions of Murex brandaris, a 
sea snail) and mineral dyes, such as Berlin (Prussian) blue, is sometimes 
referred to as herbal dyes. 
The natural colors applicable to herbal dyeing include coloring matters 
available from a large variety of plants such as Gardenia jasminoides 
(gardenia), Curcuma longa (turmeric), Phellodendron amurense (amur cork 
tree), Sagina japonica, Polygonum tinctorium, Carthamus tinctorius 
(safflower), Sophora japonica (Japanese pogada tree), Uncaria gambir 
(gambir), Prunus mume (Japanese apricot), cherry tree, Punica granatum 
(pomegranate), Thea sinensis (tea), Ternstoremia gymnanthera (evergreen 
tree), Rubia cordifolia (madder), Caesal pinia sappan (sappan wood), 
lithospermum, Rhus javanica (Japanese sumac), Eurya japonica, Artemisia 
princeps (wormwood), Miscanthus sinensis (eulalia), Chrysanthemum 
morifolium var. sinense (Chinese chrysanthemum), Nandia domestica. Mahonia 
japonica (Japanese mahonia), Pueraria lobata (kudzu-vine), Quercus 
acutissima (kind of oak), Quercus myrsinaefolia (bambooleafed oak), 
Geranium thunbergii (cranesbill), Rodgersia podophylla, Myrica rubra 
(bayberry), Juglans mandshurica (walnut), Haematoxylon campechianum (log 
wood), Quercus dentata (Daimyo oak), morning glory, Rosa hydrida (rose), 
Crocus sativus (saffron), Tagetes patula, Vitis coignetiae (glory vine), 
eggplant, acorn, Miscanthus tinctorius (eulalia), azalea, Coptis japonica 
(goldthread), Rosa rugosa (Japanese rose), Cryptomeria japonica (Japanese 
red cedar), Chamaecyparis obtusa (hinoki cypress), pine, Osmanthus 
heterophyllus, Prunus persica (peach tree), Houttuynia cordata, Lespedeza 
bicolor var. japonica (bush clover), Japanese persimmon tree, Castanea 
crenata (Japanese chetnut tree), Phaseous angularis, Glycine max, Rhus 
succedanea (wax tree), Solidago altissima (tall golden-rod), Allium cepa 
(onion), Taxus cuspidata (Japanese yew), Alnus japonica (Japanese alder), 
Pieris japonica (Japanese andromeda), Albizzia julibrissin (silk flower), 
etc. 
Several proposals have also been made concerning the use of fungi and other 
microorganisms, algae, etc. or their metabolic products as dyestuffs. 
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 234988/1990 discloses a dyeing 
process employing shiitake (a variety of mushroom, Cortinellus shiitake) 
which comprises boiling shiitake to extract a color principle, dyeing a 
fabric with the extract and developing and fixing the color with a 
mordant. This process is described as "piece mordant dyeing" method 
employing an infusion of wood ash as the mordant. 
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 132886/1989 describes a method of 
dyeing a textile article which comprises dispersing a microfine powder of 
quartz porphyry in a water-soluble acrylic resin solution, pouring the 
dispersion in hot water, adding a plant extract and a dyestuff thereto, 
dipping a substrate textile product in the resulting dye bath and carrying 
out the usual after-treatments such as soaping and drying. 
While this technology is intended to enhance the warmth-retaining property 
of textile products by taking advantage of the far-infrared light emission 
from quartz porphyry, the invention claims such additional functions as 
further warmth retention, cold retention and mothproofing through the 
concomitant use of a plant extract. As plant extracts for warmth 
retention, garlic, Chinese pepper, polypore, Kasi, Euchresta japonica, 
Bandai kinori, Bandai udo, polygonum fruit, comfrey, Chinese matrimony 
vine fruit, aloe leaf, chrolera, etc. are employed. For cold retention, 
citrus plants such as mandarin orange, orange, etc. are used. When 
mothproofing is the objective, the barks and leaves of hinoki cypress and 
other trees are employed. However, plant extracts are not used as dyes, 
and as dyestuffs, natural colors (those used in herbal dyeing) and 
synthetic dyes are additionally employed. 
An article in the May 22, 1991 issue of the Nikkei Sangyo Shinbun covered a 
method of dyeing silk which comprises cutting the stalk of reishi 
(Ganoderma lucidum), a bracket fungus of the genus Ganoderma, into fine 
fragments, boiling them to prepare an extract, bottoming a woven fabric 
with this extract, then coloring it with a man-made dyestuff and finally 
dusting spores of reishi thereon. 
The conventional herbal dyeing is not only complicated in dyeing procedure 
but inferior in dye reception and color fastness, particularly in the case 
of cotton and linen, so that the unique characteristic of the coloring 
substance is not lasting and this has been the greatest shortcoming of 
herbal dyeing. 
Moreover, although herbal dyeing is just in line with the current general 
trend towards favoring naturalness, it has the limit of being not 
necessarily conducive to development of new functions. In this respect, 
the shiitake dyeing described in Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 
234988/1990 deserves attention only in that as an uncommon kind of 
coloring material is used for herbal dyeing. Unless a dyeing method leads 
to development of a new function, it is not different from dyeing with a 
synthetic dyestuff. 
The dyeing process proposed by Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 
132886/1989 comprises adding quartz porphyry and a plant extract to a 
synthetic dye bath to exploit the warmth-retaining feature of the 
far-infrared light emission from quartz porphyry and the warmth-and-cold 
retaining and mothproofing actions of the plant extract but inevitably the 
deposit of quartz porphyry on the textile article detracts from its handle 
and when a natural color is used as the dyestuff, the fastness of the 
color obtainable is not satisfactory. 
In the technology reported in the May 22, 1991 issue of the Nikkie Sangyo 
Shinbun, bottoming is performed with reishi but the bottoming is a 
pretreatment and the actual is dyeing performed with a man-made dyestuff. 
The above article says, "Reishi builds up colors, viz. blue, red, yellow 
and purple" and "the stalk of reishi is cut into fine fragments and boiled 
to prepare an extract". However, although reishi occurs in six kinds, 
namely, seishi (blue), sekishi (red), ooshi (yellow), hakushi (white), 
kokushi (black) and shishi (purple), it is not true that reishi builds up 
colors and, moreover, they use the stalk (stipe) which is less useful than 
the "cap (pileus)" which is rich in activity. Thus, both factually and 
technically, there are several doubtful points. After all, the dyed 
product mentioned in this article is not a product dyed with reishi to 
reproduce "the color of reishi" but nothing more than a woven fabric given 
a deluxe feeling by pretreatment with an extract of the stalk of reishi or 
dusting with spores of the fungus. 
The present invention has been developed, against the above background, to 
provide a dyed textile article having the natural and unique hue and 
feeling of reishi, with sufficient depths of color and extremely high 
color fastness, and even having antimicrobial and antiallergic activities. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The dyed textile article according to the invention has been treated with 
tannic acid and dyed with an extract of the mycelium (hyphae) or 
basidiocarp (fruiting body) of reishi. 
The method of producing a dyed textile article according to the invention 
comprises contacting a substrate textile article with a pretreating bath 
containing tannic acid, then with a mordant bath containing an alumina 
mordant for fixation of tannic acid and further with a dye bath containing 
an extract of the mycelium or basidiocarp of reishi.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
The textile article as the term is used in this specification and the 
claims appended thereto means any and all of raw fibers, slivers, yarns, 
piles, flocs, woven fabrics, knitted fabrics, nonwoven fabrics, implanted 
fabrics and so on. In addition, paper and wood products should also be 
regarded as textile articles in the context of the invention. 
The raw materials for such textile articles are not limited but include 
cotton, linen, silk, wool, etc., inclusive of blends, mix-spuns, 
mix-wovens and mix-knits thereof with chemical or synthetic fibers. 
However, it is one of the outstanding features of the invention that the 
technology is applicable to cotton and linen which are usually not 
sufficiently receptive to herbal dyeing systems and not satisfactory in 
color fastness. 
In accordance with the invention, the substrate fabric is desized, scoured, 
bleached and otherwise pretreated and, then, contacted with a pretreating 
bath containing tannic acid. 
While tannic acid may be a purified product, an extract of a plant of high 
tannic acid content, such as Japanese gall, gall, etc. or a semi-processed 
preparation thereof can be advantageously utilized. Japanese gall contains 
about 60to 75% of tannic acid and gall contains about 55to 65%. Pure 
tannic acid may also be regarded as a natural substance because it can be 
obtained by a process comprising crushing Japanese gall or gall, 
extracting it with a mixture of ether and ethanol, adding water to the 
extract to transfer tannic acid into the aqueous phase and, if necessary, 
further purifying the aqueous solution. 
The bath ratio for tannic acid pretreatment is about 10 to 100 times 
(particularly about 20 to 60 times) based on the weight of the textile 
article. The bath temperature is about 50.degree. to 95.degree. C. 
(particularly about 60.degree. to 90.degree. C.) and the treating time is 
about 10 minutes to 2 hours (particularly about 20 minutes to 1.5 hours). 
The concentration of tannic acid is usually about 5 to 20% by weight based 
on the weight of the textile product, although the range is not exclusive. 
After tannic acid pretreatment, the textile article may be a 1-3% (by 
weight) solution of tartar emetic (potassium antimony tartarate) for 
fixation of tannic acid but since the fixation of tannic acid may be 
achieved in the next mordanting stage, this step may be omitted. 
Following said tannic acid pretreatment, the textile article is contacted 
with a mordant bath containing an alumina mordant for fixation of tannic 
acid and mordanting. This process is very important and unless it is 
carried out, both dyeing affinity and color fastness will be poor in the 
next dyeing stage. 
The alumina mordant mentioned above includes, among others, 
(1) Aluminum salts such as aluminum acetate, aluminum sulfate, aluminum 
chloride, alum, burnt alum, potassium alum, etc.; 
(2) Commercial aluminum solutions; 
(3) Wood and straw ashes or combinations thereof with (1) and/or (2); 
(4) Ashes of aluminum-rich grasses and trees, particularly ashes of tsubaki 
(Camellia japonica) and trees belonging to the family Symplocaceae, such 
as sawafutagi (Symplocos chinensis f. pilosa), hisakaki (Eurya japonica), 
etc., kunugi (Quercus acutissima), akaza (Chenopodium album) var. 
centrorubrum, early-ripening rice straw, etc., or combinations thereof 
with (1) and/or (2); and 
(5) Combinations of any of (1) through (4) with an alkali such as potassium 
carbonate, sodium carbonate, potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide and so 
on. 
Though chemical substances, among them, can be used for fixation and 
mordanting, it is particularly desirable to use natural wood or straw 
ashes in order to emphasize the natural feeling which is one of the 
characteristics of the invention. Particularly preferred are ashes of 
aluminum-rich grasses or trees such as tsubaki (Camellia japonica) and 
trees of the family Symplocaceae, e.g. sawafutagi (Symplocos chinensis f. 
pilosa), hisakaki (Eurya japonica), etc. Mordants other than alumina 
mordants are also known. For example, iron mordants (iron salts), copper 
mordants (copper salts), tin mordants (tin salts), chromium mordants 
(chromium salts), etc. are known for use as mordants in herbal dyeing. 
These mordants can of couse be employed but in consideration of the fact 
that these mordants tend to produce colors characteristic of the 
respective metal ions and thereby make it difficult to achieve the feeling 
intrinsic to herbal dyeing or may cause clouding of the color and the fact 
that, in light of the nature of the invention, it is preferable to employ 
a metal salt harmless to the ecology, these mordants are not necessarily 
suited for the object of the invention. However, when the above-mentioned 
alumina mordant is used as a main ingredient of the bath, the concomitant 
presence of metal salts other than salts of aluminum does not constitute a 
major disadvantage. 
The mordant bath ratio is about 1:10 to 1:100 (particularly 1:20 to 1:60). 
The bath temperature may range from ordinary temperature to boiling 
temperature, the treating time is about 10 minutes to 1 hour, and the 
concentration of the alumina mordant is usually about 3 to 15% by weight, 
as aluminum ion, although these ranges are not critical. 
After said tannic acid pretreatment and mordanting, the textile article is 
dyed by contacting it with a dye bath containing an extract of the 
mycelium or basidiocarp of reishi. What is important is that dyeing is 
preceded by tannic acid treatment and mordanting. If mordanting is 
performed after dyeing, the desired effect will not be obtained. 
Ganoderma lucidum is a species of the genus Ganoderma. the family 
Polyporales, the order Aphyllophorales of Basidiomycetes, and is distinct 
from fungi of the genus Oxyporus. Polypore (a shelf pore fungus), which is 
a well-known folk medicine, belongs to the genus Oxyporus and is 
dissimilar to reishi in all of appearance, morphology and pharmaceutical 
efficacy. 
Regarding reishi, the Shinno Honzo Kyo (Herbs Sutra of Shinno), the source 
book of Kampo medicine, mentions six kinds, namely seishi (blue), sekishi 
(red), ooshi (yellow), hakushi (white), kokushi (black) and shishi 
(purple), and describes the pharmaceutical efficacy of each. Reishi is, 
thus, one of the timehonored kampo drugs and today many scientific reports 
are available which describe that reishi has such varied pharmacological 
activities as antiallergic, macrophage activating, antitumor, 
antihypertensive, hypoglycemic, antihyperlipidemic and antithrombotic 
activities. 
There are some literature reporting that the pharmaceutical efficacy of 
reishi varies a great deal according to the place of gathering, harvest 
time and strain. Kyoritsu Pharmaceutical Industries Co., Ltd., from which 
the inventors of the present invention received a donation of reishi, 
conducted an efficacy screening with a large number of strains of 
Ganoderma lucidum (reishi) gathered in various localities, using 
experimental antiallergic activity as an indicator, and found that an 
extract of the strain which they had discovered in Yamashiro, Nara 
Prefecture, Japan and succeeded in cultivation exhibits potent inhibitory 
activity in various allergy models. They named the strain "Kyoritsu I 
Reishi". Therefore, although there is no limitation on gathering place or 
strain for proposes of the present invention, it is particularly 
advantageous to employ "Kyoritsu I Reishi" which the manufacture claims is 
highly effective against various allergic deseases such as bronchial 
asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, urticaria, drug allergy and 
so on. In this manner, the desirable antimicrobial and antiallergic 
functions can be imparted to dyed textile articles. It should be 
understood that the use of other strains of reishi also provides dyed 
textiles having the like properties. 
As the raw reishi material, the mycelium and/or basidiocarp of this fungus 
can be utilized. Thus, when the mycelia or basidiocarps of reishi are 
extracted with water or/and a hydrophilic organic solvent (e.g. alcohol), 
there is obtained an extract of the active principle (glycoprotein 
conjugates etc.). If necessary, this extract can be subjected to dialysis 
or utrafiltration or to further extraction. As the preferred technique for 
extracting the active principle from reishi, the method disclosed in 
Japanese Patent Kokai Publication No. 72629/1988 (applicant: Kyoritsu 
Pharmaceutical Industries, Co. Ltd.) may be mentioned by way of example. 
The bath ratio for dyeing reaction is generally about 10 to 100 times 
(particularly about 20 to 60 times). The bath temperature is generally 
about 50.degree. to 95.degree. C. (particularly about 60.degree. to 
90.degree. C.) and the treating time is generally about 20 minutes to 3 
hours (particularly about 30 minutes to 2 hours). However, these ranges 
are not critical. The dye concentration can be selected, within a broad 
range, according to the intended application. 
After completion of the dyeing process, the textile article is subjected to 
after-treatments such as soaping, rinse, etc. and allowed to dry or dried 
in a hot current of air. 
The above procedure yields a textile article treated with tannic acid and 
dyed with an extract of the mycelium or basidiocarp of reishi. 
Since the dyeing reaction is preceded by treatment with tannic acid and 
mordanting in the present invention, the dyeing reaction with the reishi 
extract proceeds smoothly and, at the same time, the binding between the 
active substance of reishi and the textile article is positively 
accomplished, with the result that the article is dyed to a deep shade and 
the color is very fast. 
The dyeing with a reishi extract not only yields a natural, unique hue and 
feeling but, because the active substance of reishi is securely bound, 
imparts to textile articles an antiallergic function. Thus, the dyed 
articles are kind to the skin, have a skin-conditioning effect, and 
suppress itchy sensation. 
It has also been found that the dyed textile article of the invention has 
an antimicrobial function. It seems that this effect is derived not only 
from the antimicrobial activity of the tannic acid bound to the textile 
article but also from the antimicrobial action of the reishi extract. This 
antimicrobial function is biostatic activity, which means that it does not 
affect the physiological system of man, and, therefore, the dyed textile 
article of the invention can be used for therapeutic purposes, that is to 
say by patients with skin disease or pruritus. 
Therefore, the dyed textile article of the invention is particularly useful 
for products which come into contact with the skin in use, such as 
underwear, shirts, nightclothes, sheeting, gloves, caps, sportsman's 
supporters, bathing wear, bandages, clothing for patients, masks and so 
on. Furthermore, because of its fashionable qualities, the dyed textile 
article of the invention finds application as other products which are not 
brought into contact with the skin. 
The flowing examples are intended to illustrate the invention in further 
detail. In the examples, all parts and % are by weight. The symbol % of 
stands for percentage of the weight of the substrate textile article. 
EXAMPLE 1 
In 280 ml of water was dissolved 10.5 g (15% owf) of tannic acid to prepare 
a pretreating both (bath ratio 1:40) and one sheet of Egyptian cotton 
cloth weighing 70 g was immersed in the bath. The bath was heated to 
85.degree. C. and maintained at the same temperature for about 60 minutes. 
After cooling, the cloth was dehydrated. 
The cotton cloth pretreated with tannic acid as above was then immersed in 
a suspension of 35 g (50% owf) of ashes of sawafutagi (Symplocos chinensis 
f. pilosa) in 2800 ml of water (bath ratio 1:40) and the bath was boiled 
with stirring for 15 minutes to complete mordanting. The cloth was then 
rinsed twice and air-dried. 
In 2100 ml of water was suspended 14 g (20% owf) of the basidiocarps 
(tradename: Reishi B) of Kyoritsu I Reishi (manufactured by Kyoritsu 
Pharmaceutical Industries Co. Ltd.), followed by addition of 0.21 g of 
soda ash and boiling for extraction. After cooling, the pH of the extract 
was adjusted to 5.0 with 0.17 ml of acetic acid. 
This stock solution of reishi was diluted with water to make 2800 ml bath 
ratio 1:40) and the Egyptian cotton cloth pretreated and mordanted as 
above was immersed into the bath. The bath was heated to 85.degree. C. 
with stirring and dyeing was performed at this temperature for about 50 
minutes. After dyeing, the cloth was rinsed twice, dehydrated and 
air-dried. In this manner, the desired reishi-dyed cotton cloth was 
obtained. 
The dyed cotton cloth thus obtained had a natural, unique hue (beige with a 
tinge of gold), with pleasing handle and feeling. 
Using testpieces (2 cm.times.2 cm) of the above dyed cotton cloth, an 
antibacterial activity assay was carried out in accordance with the new 
method for antibacterial activity assay (JOURNAL OF ANTIBACTERIAL AND 
ANTIFUNGAL AGENTS, JAPAN, 16, 2, 49-57, 1988) 
Media: nutrient broth and nutrient agar 
Tester strains: E. coli ATCC 25922 and S. aureus ATCC 25923. 
As a result, the cloth showed overt antibacterial activity against these 
strains, as follows. 
E coli ATCC 25922 
Initial cell count: 1.38.times.10.sup.5 cells/g (cloth) 
Viable cell count: 4.70.times.10.sup.4 cells/g (cloth) 
Activity CA (bactericidal): 65.9% 
S. aureus ATCC 25923 
Initial cell count: 3.27.times.10.sup.5 cells/g (cloth) 
Viable cell count: 0 cells/g (cloth) 
Activity CA (bactericidal): 100% 
The Hamamatsu Testing Laboratory of Japan Textile Inspection Association, 
Inc. was requested to perform four kinds of fastness tests with this 
reishi-dyed cotton cloth. 
(1) Light fastness test (the test for investigating the influence of 
ultraviolet and infrared rays of solar radiation, fluorescent light, etc.) 
(2) Laundering resistance test (the test in regard to the degree of 
decolorization under usual settings and whether the color is transferred 
to a white fabric laundered together; since herb-dyed fabrics often 
discolor on laundering with a weakly alkaline detergent, particular care 
must generally be exercised.) 
(3) Perspiration test (the test to see whether the testpiece is discolored 
by human sweat (alkaline, acidic). 
((4) Rubbing fastness test (the test to see whether the color is 
transferred by friction). 
(for practical purposes, the rating of grade 3 or higher is acceptable). 
According to the report from the Laboratory, the ratings of the dyed cloth 
of this example were grade 4 for light fastness, grade 4-5 for laundering 
resistance, both with a neutral detergent and a weakly alkaline detergent, 
grade 4-5 for perspiration resistance, and grade 4 for rubbing fastness. 
Thus, the dyed cloth of this example was rated high in all the four tests. 
It has, thus, been objectively proven that the reishi-dyed cotton cloth of 
the invention has qualities which have never been obtained by herbal 
dyeing. 
A large number of pieces of reishi-dyed cloth were prepared in the same 
manner as above and sewn into underwear, and under the guidance of the 
Department of Botany, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Kinki 
University, a panel of 10 volunteers with sensitive skin was instructed to 
wear the underwear and compare the result of use with that of wearing the 
usual cotton underwear. As a result, 8 of the panelists answered 
"effective" and 2 gave the rating of "very effective". 
EXAMPLE 2 
The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that an extract of Japanese 
gall was used in lieu of 10.5 g (15% owf) of tannic acid. As a result, 
there was obtained a reishi-dyed cotton cloth comparable to the cloth of 
Example 1 in color tone, feeling, handle, fastness, antimicrobial activity 
and kindness to skin (antiallergic effect). 
COMATIVE EXAMPLE 1 
The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that the fixation with a 
suspension of ashes of sawafutagi (Symplocos chinensis f. pilosa) was 
omitted. The resulting dyed cloth was insufficient in the depth of color 
and uneven in color. Moreover, it was not satisfactory in color fastness 
to laundering. Thus, this dyed cloth was by far inferior to the dyed cloth 
of Example 1. 
COMATIVE EXAMPLE 2 
The stalk of reishi was cut into small pieces and boiled in water. This 
extract was diluted with water to make 2800 ml (bath ratio 1:40) and one 
sheet of Egyptian cotton cloth weighing 70 g was immersed in the bath and 
stirred. The bath was heated to 85.degree. C. and dyeing was carried out 
at this temperature for about 50 minutes. After completion of dyeing, the 
cloth was rinsed twice, dehydrated and air-dried. 
The resulting dyed cotton cloth was markedly insufficient in the depth of 
color and uneven in color. Moreover, it was unsatisfactory in color 
fastness to laundering. Thus, this dyed cloth was by far inferior to the 
dyed cotton cloth obtained in Comparative Example 1. 
COMATIVE EXAMPLE 3 
The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that the commercial 
chromium, iron, copper and tin mordants were respectively used in lieu of 
the suspension of ashes of sawafutagi (Symplocos chinensis f. pilosa). The 
resulting dyed cloth was lacking in the natural, unique color tone 
expected from reishi. uneven in color and poor in laundering fastness. 
Thus, this dyed cotton cloth was obviously inferior to the dyed cloth 
obtained in Example 1. 
EXAMPLE 3 
In 2800 ml of water was dissolved 10.5 g (15% owf) (as tannic acid) of an 
extract of Japanese gall (bath ratio 1:40) to prepare a treating bath. 
Then, a piece of linen cloth weighing 70 g was immersed in the bath and 
heated at 80.degree. C. for about 60 minutes. After cooling, the cloth was 
dehydrated. 
To 420 ml of water was added 84 g of tsubaki (Camellia japonica) ashes and 
the mixture was boiled for 30 minutes to prepare a wood ash solution. This 
solution was made up to 2800 ml with a solution of 4.2 ml of a commercial 
aluminum solution for linen in 1 l of water and the balance of water. 
The linen cloth pretreated with tannic acid as above was put in this bath 
and mordanted at 85.degree. C. with stirring for 15 minutes. The cloth was 
then rinsed twice, dehydrated and air-dried. 
To 500 ml of water was added 17.5 g (25% owf) of the basidiocarps of 
Kyoritsu I Reishi (manufactured by Kyoritsu Pharmaceutical Industries Co., 
Ltd.) followed by addition of 0.05 g of soda ash. The mixture was boiled 
for 60 minutes for extraction. After cooling, the pH was adjusted to 5.0 
with 0.2 ml of acetic acid. 
The above reishi extract was diluted with water to make 2800 ml (bath ratio 
1:40) and the linen cloth pretreated and mordanted as above was immersed 
in the bath. The bath was heated to 85.degree. C. with stirring, and 
dyeing was performed at this temperature for about 50 minutes. After 
completion of dyeing, the cloth was rinsed twice, dehydrated and 
air-dried. The above procedure gave the desired dyed linen cloth. 
This dyed linen cloth had a natural, unique hue (beige with a tinge of 
gold), with exquisite feeling and handle. 
The depth of color, color fastness, antimicrobial activity and kindness to 
skin (antiallergic function) of this dyed linen cloth were as satisfactory 
as those of the dyed cloth obtained in Example 1. 
EXAMPLE 4 
In 500 ml of water was dissolved 1.5 g (15% owf) of tannic acid (bath ratio 
1:50) to prepare a treating bath and a piece of silk cloth weighing 10 g 
was immersed in the bath. The temperature was increased to 85.degree. C. 
and the treatment was carried out for about 60 minutes. After cooling, 0.3 
g (3% owf) of tartar emetic was added and dissolved and the cloth was 
further treated for 60 minutes. The treated cloth was rinsed and 
dehydrated. 
Then, the silk cloth treated with tannic acid as above was put in a 
suspension of 5.0 g of tsubaki (Camellia japonica) ashes in 500 ml of 
water and mordanted by boiling for 20 minutes, with stirring. The cloth 
was then rinsed and dehydrated. 
In 62.5 ml of water was suspended 2.5 g (25% owf) of the same basidiocarp 
of reishi as that used in Example 1 and the suspension was boiled for 60 
minutes to prepare an extract. 
This reishi extract was diluted with water to make 500 ml (bath ratio 1:50) 
and the silk cloth pretreated and mordanted as above was immersed in this 
dye bath. The temperature was increased to 85.degree. C. with stirring, 
and the cloth was dyed at this temperature for about 60 minutes. After 
completion of dyeing, the cloth was rinsed twice, dehydrated and 
air-dried. The above procedure yielded the desired reishi-dyed silk cloth. 
This dyed silk cloth had a natural and unique hue, with exquisite feeling 
and handle. 
Thus, in accordance with the invention, not only silk and wool substrates 
but cotton, linen and other substrates which have so far been considered 
to be hardly dyeable by herbal dyeing can be successfully dyed with good 
dyeing affinity, thus enabling us to obtain dyed textile articles having 
natural and unique hue and feeling with unusually high color fastness to 
laundering. 
Furthermore, these dyed textile articles have functional features, namely 
the antiallergic function of being kind to the skin and able to condition 
the skin and suppress itchy sensation and the antimicrobial function. 
In addition, since tannic acid preteatment can be carried out with a 
natural material, such as Japanese gall, and mordanting with grass or wood 
ashes such as ashes of Camellia japonica, Symplocos chinensis f. pilosa, 
Eurya japonica, etc., all the process inclusive of dyeing with a reishi 
extract can be performed with naturally-occurring substances. Moreover, 
since cotton, linen and other substrates which have heretofore been 
considered to be difficult to dye by herbal dyeing can be successfully 
dyed, the invention meets the consumer's demand for naturalness and 
aspiration for health. 
Therefore, the dyed textile article of the invention is not only suitable 
for health care clothing and other products for health maintenance but 
also ideal for fashionable clothing.