Identification of ancient textiles from Yingpan,Xinjiang, by multiple analytical techniques

Various extraordinary textiles were excavated from a graveyard at Yingpan, Xinjiang, on the middle route of the ancient Silk Road. Applications of western motifs and designs to traditional Chinese textiles led to the emergence of compound woven textiles with central Asian characters. For a better understanding of the cultural exchanges and textile trade between the West and the East in ancient times, identifications of archaeological fibres and dyes were carried out for various funerary textile objects by using multiple analytical techniques, such as high performance liquid chromatography with photodiode detection, optical microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Fibre identifications were performed for 35 archaeological textile samples, and the results showed that the ancient textiles were mostly made from Bombyx mori silk and wool. The SEM and FT-IR experimental results revealed that these ancient textiles remained morphologically intact due to the special (very dry) climate in Xinjiang, but noticeably degraded at the molecular level due to long time thermo-ageing and/or biodegradation. The principal colouring matters, such as alizarin, purpurin, indigotin and luteolin, were respectively characterised for nine archaeological textile samples. The yellow dyestuffs derived from luteolin-based plants were assumed to have been imported to China from the Middle East and Western Asia through the Silk Road.     

山普拉墓群出土毛织品上蓝色染料的分析研究

本文采用薄层色谱法、红外光谱法、高效液相色谱法、质谱及快原子轰击质谱法的分析测试手段,通过综合比照认定毛织品上的蓝色染料的主要成分应是靛蓝素,染色过程中可能采用了复染与套染工艺     

Characterization of dyestuffs in ancient textiles from Xinjiang

Extraordinarily well-preserved organic remains from mortuary and settlement sites, including mummified bodies, are scattered along the outer, oasis-laden rim of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang Province, China, ranging in date from about 1400 BC to the late first millennium BC. Specimens of textile finds from Chärchän, dated at about 1000 BC were selected for dye analysis using newly developed protocols employing high performance liquid chromatography with spectrophotometric and mass spectrometric detection. A single blue (from an indigo plant), a red (from madder, a Rubia species) and two yellow dyes were detected, although the exact plant source for none of them could be identified with certainty. This research offers new insights in the interpretation of textile finds from prehistoric Xinjiang, and more generally, of early Bronze Age Eurasia.     

纺织品类文物材质与染料分析方法

"丝绸之路"的起点位于中国/东亚,中国在"丝路"的发展中占有重要的地位。古代纺织品文物种类繁多,常用的纺织品科学研究方法有色谱、光谱、质谱等。本研究基于目前纺织品文物的分析现状,从纤维、染料两个重要角度,系统地阐述目前已有的扫描电子显微镜、傅里叶红外光谱、光纤光谱等纺织纤维分析技术,以及薄层色谱、高效液相色谱、拉曼光谱、光纤光谱等纺织品染料分析方法。对于纺织纤维鉴别,扫描电镜、傅里叶红外等方法可靠性较高;对于纺织品染料分析,高效液相色谱的分析精度更受认可;而拉曼光谱、光纤光谱技术具有原位、无损的优势,在纺织品文物研究中也日益被重视。对这些方法的原理、特点及其在古代纺织品分析中的研究进展与发展潜力的归纳与综述,将为纺织品文物保护相关研究提供参考与科学支持。     

古代染料及其分析检测技术

纺织品考古具有百年历史,但纺织品科技考古是一个新兴的研究领域。其中,古代染料的分析检测可以提供天然染料的来源、相关染色方法,甚至纺织品文物的生产地点和时间等重要信息,从而为古代文物的修复和保护提供科学依据,且有助于了解古代纺织服饰的色彩文化。古代染料按颜色分可分为红色系染料、蓝色系染料和黄色系染料等,其中:红色系染料中植物染料较为常见的有红花、苏木和茜草等,动物染料主要有南美胭脂虫、克玫兹胭脂虫和紫胶虫等；蓝色系染料一般为靛青,主要从含靛植物中获得,中国历史上使用的含靛植物主要有马蓝、木蓝、蓼蓝和菘蓝；黄色系染料主要包括黄栌、槐米、黄檗和姜黄等。目前,用于古代染料分析检测的方法主要有光纤反射光谱(FORS)、荧光光谱(FS)、高效液相色谱-质谱联用(HPLC-MS)和表面增强拉曼光谱(SERS)技术等,这些方法具有各自特点,为纺织品文物上天然染料的研究提供了科学支持。     

Characterizations of palace lantern tassels preserved in The Palace Museum,Beijing, by UPLC-ESI-Q-TOF

Palace lanterns were important and highly visible decorations in the imperial palace in Beijing, China, during the Qing dynasty (1636–1912). Most lanterns had colourful tassels made of fibres. The study performed a comprehensive investigation of the materials and dyes used for palace lantern tassels preserved in The Palace Museum, Beijing. Eight samples with different colours, including yellow, green and red, from five palace lanterns were analysed. By using ultra-performance liquid chromatography combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, the compositions of the dyes were identified quickly, and thus the dyes' origins were explored. A X-ray fluorescence spectrometer assisted in the detection of whether a mordant was used during the dyeing process. As a result, the tassels were all made of silk, discovered through the use of microscopic observation and micro-Fourier transform infrared spectrometry analysis. Different dyeing techniques were found in these tassels: yellow tassels were dyed by cork tree or turmeric by a direct dyeing method; greens were dyed by pagoda bud with an iron mordant, or by the combination of cork tree and indigo using multi-dyeing method; and red tassels were coloured with different acid red industrial dyes. These results provide valuable data for the conservation of ancient textile tassels and contribute to the investigation of other hanging tags.     

甘肃泾川罗汉洞石窟壁画及制作工艺研究

罗汉洞石窟始凿于北朝,是泾川百里石窟长廊的重要组成部分。作为古代丝绸之路上的重要历史文化遗产,其赋存的石窟壁画内容丰富,制作工艺特殊,对于研究泾川佛教的发展及丝绸之路文明有着重要的价值。通过罗汉洞壁画材质组成、结构特征等综合分析,壁画主体结构由内到外依次为支撑体,粗泥层(添加有麦秸),细泥层(添加有棉花),白底层,颜料层。壁画多处可看出重层现象,内层早期壁画所采用颜料均为矿物颜料,其中红色颜料为朱砂,绿色颜料为氯铜矿,蓝色颜料为石青。而外层清代光绪年间壁画红色颜料为铁红,绿色颜料为巴黎绿,蓝色颜料为群青,橙色颜料为铁黄,黑色颜料为炭黑。通过对罗汉洞石窟壁画制作工艺进行诠释与解读,并与其他丝路沿线壁画颜料应用方面进行比对,以期促进这一丝路文化遗产的保护和利用。     

古代织品染料的分析

从染草中提取出各种植物染料,然后进行古样品的模拟染色。以薄层色谱法为主要测试手段,并结合化学分析以及高效液相色谱。紫外光谱等近代方法对染料进行分析与鉴定,建立起一套行之有效的天然植物染料分析和鉴定的方法,并成功地用于古代样品的分析,揭示了三千年前古样品染料色素的成分。     

THE ANALYSIS OF DYESTUFFS FROM FIRST‐ TO SECOND‐CENTURY TEXTILE ARTEFACTS FOUND IN THE MARTRES‐DE‐VEYRE (FRANCE) EXCAVATIONS*

A series of Gallo‐Roman clothes and miscellaneous textile fragments from the first and second centuries from the Martres‐de‐Veyre necropolis (Puy‐de‐Dôme, France) was investigated. The objects studied were excavated between 1851 and 1923, during successive rounds of archaeological work. Since that time, they have been conserved in the Barguin Museum at Clermont‐Ferrand. The target of our research was dye identification, as it gives very interesting and useful information regarding the ancient technology. This approach has until now not been considered to be relevant and, unfortunately, is not systematic. The analysis was carried out by high‐performance liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection (HPLC–PDA). The small samples (threads up to 0.6 mg, less than 1 cm long) of coloured textile fibres were submitted to this technique. In one case, X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis was applied. According to the analysis, the dyeing sources proposed are the Rubiaceae family for red, a luteolin ‘base’ for yellow, ellagitannins for brown and indigo for blue colours. Several samples did not seem to contain any dye. We point out possible factors for the partial dye source determination: instrumental limits, sample size, low dyestuff content in analysed samples and the dyes’ decomposition during ageing. Some improvements of dye analysis in archaeological samples by separation techniques based on recent analytical instrumentation and combined approaches are proposed.     

Starch grains analysis of stone knives from Changning site,Qinghai Province,Northwest China

Plant residues recovered from prehistoric stone artifacts can be used to help explain tool function and plant use. At the Changning site in Qinghai Province, Northwest China, dating from 4000 yr BP, we examined starch granules extracted from three slate stone knives. A total of 153 starch grains were retrieved from three stone knives, from which we identified starches from legumes, the Triticeae tribe, foxtail millet (Setaria italica), broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum), roots and tubers. These results indicate that the stone knives may have been used for a variety of activities that included reaping grasses and food processing. The species of starch grains retrieved from the study sample reveal that diverse crops were cultivated at the Changning site 4000 years ago.     

Chemical analysis of 17th century Millefiori glasses excavated in the Monastery of Sta. Clara-a-Velha,Portugal: comparison with Venetian and façon-de-Venise production

A set of ten Millefiori glass fragments dating from the 17th century, originated from archaeological excavations carried out at the Monastery of Sta. Clara-a-Velha (Coimbra, Portugal), were characterized by X-ray electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), Raman microscopy and UV–Visible absorption spectroscopy. All glasses are of soda-lime-silica type. The use of coastal plant ash is suggested by the relatively high content of MgO, K₂O and P₂O₅, as well as by the presence of chlorine. Tin oxide or calcium antimonate were the opacifiers used in the opaque glasses, cobalt in the blue glasses, copper in the turquoise glasses, iron in the yellow and greenish glasses, and iron and copper were found in the opaque red and aventurine glasses. Based on the concentrations of alumina and silica four different sources of silica were identified, allowing the classification of the glasses into the following compositional groups: low alumina (<2 wt%), which includes a sub-group of cristallo samples with SiO₂ > 70 wt%, medium alumina (2–3 wt%), high alumina (3–6 wt%) and very high alumina (>6 wt%). Comparison with genuine Venetian and façon-de-Venise compositions showed that two fragments are of Venetian production, one of Venetian or Spanish production and the remaining are of unknown provenance. In two fragments the glass of the decoration is probably Venetian or Spanish but the glass used in the body is also of unknown provenance.     

Human activity and its impact on the landscape at the Xishanping site in the western Loess Plateau during 4800–4300 cal yr BP based on the fossil charcoal record

The taxonomic identification of fossil charcoal can be a useful archaeobotanical tool, as it can reveal information about prehistoric humans' use of plant resources and other factors. In this study, we quantify the fossil charcoal in a cultural sequence from Xishanping in the western Loess Plateau of China representing 4800–4300 cal yr BP to consider aspects of humans' impact on this landscape. The fossil charcoal assemblages reveal that the relative abundances of Picea, Betula, Acer, Ulmus and Quercus decreased markedly after 4600 cal yr BP. This suggests a marked decline in the mixed coniferous-broadleaved forest after this time. Concurrently, an increasing abundance of Bambusoideae charcoal has been suggested to reflect the expansion of the bamboo forest. The marked changes in the vegetation after 4600 cal yr BP were not obviously influenced by climate; they may be a better reflection of the results of human activity. Furthermore, other genera that provide important resources to humans also increased after 4600 cal yr BP, including Castanea, Cerasus, Padus and Diospyros. It is nearly certain that nuts and berries were an important food resource and that fruit trees were managed by prehistoric humans in the late Neolithic. This work suggests that the scale of prehistoric human impact on the western Loess Plateau landscape during the late Neolithic was much greater than was previously believed.     

Potential vegetation markers – analytical pyrolysis of modern plant species representative of Neolithic SE Spain

A selection of plant species that may have been relevant for the Neolithic in the SW Mediterranean have been characterised with pyrolysis gas chromatography mass spectrometry (pyrolysis–GC/MS) in search for molecular vegetation markers. Roots and aerial parts were analysed separately for the following species: Anthyllis cytisoides, Asphodelus cerasiferus, Brachypodium retusum, Cistus albidus, Cistus clusii, Dorycnium pentaphyllum, Ephedra fragilis, Juniperus oxycedrus, Juniperus phoenicea, Olea europaea, Phillyrea angustifolia, Pinus halepensis, Pistacia lentiscus, Quercus coccifera, Rhamnus lycioides, Rosmarinus officinalis, Smilax aspera and Stipa tenacissima; furthermore domesticated plants were analysed, including wheat (Triticum aestivum, Triticum dicoccum, Triticum monococcum, Triticum timopheevi and Triticum turgidum), barley (Hordeum vulgare and H. vulgare Hulled) and legumes (Lathyrus cicera, Lathyrus sativus, Lens culinaris, Pisum sativa, Vicia ervilia, Vicia faba and Vicia sativa). This resulted in 290 potential markers. In addition, the organic matter of surface soils under different vegetation cover has been analysed to test the presence of the potential markers in the soil. Forty-six of the potential markers were detected in the soil organic matter, of which part have not been reported before. The results may be useful for interpretation of the organic matter composition of soils and plant remains, which can be valuable in archaeology.     

Silk Road glass in Xinjiang,China: chemical compositional analysis and interpretation using a high-resolution portable XRF spectrometer

In this paper we explore the major, minor and some trace elements of sixty-five glass beads from eighteen oasis sites both north and south of the Taklamakan Desert, the ancient centre of the Silk Routes linking East and West; the samples date from the Warring States period (475–2211 BCE) to the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). Using a high-resolution portable XRF spectrometer, with special attention to issues of surface weathering and sample preparation, we obtained quantitative chemical compositional data that, when combined with archaeological context and the technology of bead manufacture, provide the basis for an understanding of both changes in glass type over time, and possible source areas for the Xinjiang glasses. While glass beads at the early sites (1st c. BCE to 4th c. CE) were coming primarily from Kushan-controlled territories in northern India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, with a small contribution from central China, most of the later glass (4th–10th c. CE) is similar to that produced in the Sasanian Empire at such sites as Veh Ardashir in central Iraq. These changes most likely reflect changing cultural and economic conditions in the Silk Road towns.     

Producing multiple imaginations of the Silk Road in Xi’an,China’s urban development

ABSTRACT

This paper looks at how the Chinese government’s recent national project, ‘the Belt and Road Initiatives’ (the BRI), is played out at the local level in the context of cultural cities. Scholarship on the BRI focuses less on how the official narratives of the BRI have impacted the ongoing process of urbanization in China. This paper contextualizes the BRI by examining how both official and alternative imaginations of the Silk Road contribute to municipal-level urban plans that visualize the Silk Road in the urban built environment. Specifically, this paper suggests understanding the Silk Road in the local context, which entails a constellation of convergent and divergent interpretations by different actors involved in the official urban theming plans. These actors, both experts involved in the implementation process and members of marginalized ethnic communities, specify the vaguely defined ‘Silk Road’ in contexts that are within and beyond the original settings.     

北京市石景山区一清代墓葬出土纺织品染料与染色方法综合研究

清代的染色技术无论在染料的选择、染色方法,还是在获得颜色的数量上均达到我国古代天然染料染色的最高峰。文献和传世品研究极大推进了对清代纺织品染色技术的了解,但对清代考古纺织品染料的分析研究尚无结果发表。在此,对北京市石景山区2006年出土清代墓葬中纺织品的染料和染色方法进行了研究。化学分析使用超高效液相色谱法,首次将我国考古染料结合历史文献、传世纺织品颜色及染料组成详细比对,检测出苏木、黄檗、含鞣花酸染料(疑为橡斗)及蓝草四种染料。大多数样品上鉴定出一到两种染料,少数样品可能由三种或更多染料染成。相同的染料组合可以通过不同用量获得深浅不同的颜色。研究第一次对同一墓葬出土不同织物的染色方法进行比较,发现同种染料可以用于染不同类型、质地和用途的织物。这套纺织品所用的染料和染色方法与文献记载和传世样品都相符合。这一研究也是针对清代考古出土纺织品染料展开的首次成功的分析鉴定,补充了传世纺织品和染色历史文献,是清代染色史的重要部分。     

Oxygen isotopic composition of limpet shells from the Beagle Channel: implications for seasonal studies in shell middens of Tierra del Fuego

Shell middens distributed along the coastal areas of the Beagle Channel (Tierra del Fuego) testify the primary role of marine resources in the successful social dynamic of hunter–gatherer–fisher societies (HGF) in extreme high latitude environmental conditions. Intertidal and subtidal limpet species are frequently identified taxa of these archaeological deposits. We investigated whether shell δ¹⁸O of the limpet species Nacella deaurata is a valuable record of local sea surface temperature (SST) and ambient water δ¹⁸O (δ¹⁸Ow) fluctuations, and in turn can be used to estimate the season of its exploitation by Holocene HGF. Sequential shell δ¹⁸O of modern species track seasonal changes of SST and δ¹⁸Ow. The comparison of shell δ¹⁸O profiles of N. deaurata and Nacella magellanica (a coexisting species) suggests the occurrence of distinct growth rate and physiological adaptations between species. Shell δ¹⁸O of zooarchaeological specimens of N. deaurata from Lanashuaia II suggests that animals were exploited predominantly in winter and that experienced similar environmental conditions of present day at ∼1320 years BP. Results also indicate that N. deaurata is a valuable candidate for studying past seasonal changes in SST and δ¹⁸Ow in this southernmost part of South America.     

天然染料苏木的光褪色机理研究

有机质文物如书画和纺织品在修复保护过程中常常遇到褪色问题,对于染料分子是一种不可逆的损伤,因此有必要采用一定的科学方法对原因机理进行研究。苏木在文化遗产领域常作为天然染料用于纺织品染色,但色牢度较差。通过溶液动力学模拟实验借助紫外光老化过程推测降解副产物,追踪了对曾经在文物中检测到的有效化学组分巴西苏木素和原苏木素B在N,N-二甲基甲酰胺基质里光催化老化代谢过程,分别获得20组不同老化程度的紫外老化的标准品。实验表征手段主要采用紫外可见漫反射光谱、超高效液相色谱四极杆飞行时间质谱联用及核磁共振氢谱对颜色变化趋势和老化过程进行分析。通过苏木染色及丝织品光老化实验,得到17组不同褪色程度的纺织品样品。采用液质联用在负离子模式下结合化学计量学统计分析差异代谢物及老化机制,巴西苏木素、苏木红素及原苏木素B可能的转化及降解产物分别得到一定的推论。结果显示褪色纺织品随着光老化的发生反射光谱最大波长总体发生蓝移。巴西苏木素季碳羟基容易发生脱水反应产生一系列变化,原苏木素B光老化过程容易转化成原苏木素C、尿石素C等化合物。苏木染褪色纺织品总体可分为两类组间差异,通过主成分分析出差异代谢物巴西苏木素、原苏木素B以及C等多种老化产物,这些总体因素造成体系的光老化颜色变化。这些探索性发现期待为今后天然染料的相关研究提供启发,助力提升有机质文物的科学价值认知。     

The “Coptic” textiles of the “Museo Egizio” in Torino (Italy): a focus on dyes through a multi-technique approach

The Coptic textile collection of the Museo Egizio in Torino (Italy) has been the object of a broad project aimed at investigating the production techniques, at documenting the conservation state and at reconsidering the attributed age. The collection was also analysed by non-invasive and micro-invasive techniques with the aim of detecting the dyes that have been employed to obtain the colours, in order to complete the set of technological information available for each textile. The data collected in the present work have been compared with published results from other Coptic textile collections, with the aim of highlighting a possible link between the age of the textile and the dyes that were employed. Moreover, the combined use of spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques allowed us to compare the results for the non-invasive and the micro-invasive approaches and to go deeper into the dyeing technology by detecting unexpected combinations of dyes. In particular, the use of a double dyeing with madder and Indian lac dye was revealed in some Roman-Byzantine and Byzantine textiles from the collection.     

On the occurrence of the scimitar-toothed cat, Homotherium latidens (Carnivora; Felidae), at Kents Cavern,England

Teeth of Homotherium latidens recovered from late Pleistocene sediments, Kents Cavern, England have long been the source of controversy. H. latidens is conspicuously absent from other late Pleistocene cave deposits in Britain, and is widely thought to have been extirpated from the region during the isotope stage 10 glacial period. Here we present high spatial resolution analyses of fluorine and uranium uptake profiles in teeth of three species from the same cave. The H. latidens tooth is clearly distinguished from the unambiguously provenanced Late Pleistocene hyaena and Middle Pleistocene cave bear teeth. These results are consistent with the theory that the H. latidens teeth originated at an exogenous location, were probably transported to Kents Cavern as Palaeolithic trade goods, and were buried in Kents Cavern in Palaeolithic times.