AbstractThis paper is a survey of recent research on the technical use of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are now available in large quantities, in the synthesis of dyestuffs. This work has shown that the inclusion of these hydrocarbons may have a beneficial effect on the properties of the dyestuffs. The most interesting results were obtained with the tetracyclic compounds chrysene, pyrene and fluoranthene, for which technical use could be found, particularly in the synthesis of high‐quality dyes, e.g. anthraquinone vat‐d