In 1704 berlin blue was discovered by Diesbach in Berlin by a curious accident. This pigment maker made Florentine lacquer from cochineal, alum, iron sulfate and potash. One day, instead of potash, he used an alkali which had been used for purefying Dippel's animal oil. As if by magic a deep blue pigment appeared; its preparation remained a secret until Woodward published it in 1724. Blood-lye was mixed with a solution of alum and ferrous sulfate, and a greenish precipitate appeared, which turned blue with hydrochloric acid. Nothing is now known about Diesbach and his life. Dippel was an alchemist who undertook the manufacture of gold and was known for his animal oil. Macquer markedly improved the method of preparation of Berlin blue by preparing and using potassium ferrcyanide. Sage was the first to obtain solid potassium ferrocyanide. The deeply colored blue obtained in Paris by Macquer waas called Paris blue in Germany. In 1749 Macquer used this blue to dye fabrics, which he dipped first in a ferrous sulfate solution and then in blood-lye.