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.     

The Real vs the Imaginary: Sir William Chambers on the Chinese Garden

Sir William Chambers was one of the most important English architects in the eighteenth-century, but both in his day and later his international recognition was closely connected with his admiration for and promotion of Chinese art, particularly Chinese landscaping. Between 1757 and 1773, Chambers published three treatises praising the ingenious mixture of nature and art in a Chinese pleasure ground, criticizing the then influential English gardener Lancelot (Capability) Brown, and trying to goad English garden design into the direction of China. He did not achieve his purposes mainly because he mixed what he knew as genuine about the Chinese gardening art with what he fantasized about it. While recent scholarship has focused on his fantasy, this article examines what Chambers knew or imagined about Chinese landscaping, what he and his detractors were for and against, and how the fiasco of his 1772 and 1773 treatises, which he brought upon himself, nevertheless helped to usher in a new phase in the English reception of Chinese landscaping ideas.     

An Assessment of the Role of an Open Shelter in Reducing Soiling and Microbial Growth on the Archaeological Site of the Bishop’s Palace,Witney, England

Two sets of twelve Portland limestone tablets were attached to carousels outside and under the open, lightweight shelter at Bishop’s Palace (Witney, England) for 18 months to assess the influence of shelters on soiling and microbiological growth on stone. At the start, and at 6-month intervals, tablets were analysed using microscopy (optical and SEM), colour measurement (spectrophotometry), weight change measurement and salt content determination (ion chromatography). Concentrations of NO₂ and SO₂ were also monitored for a month using diffusion tubes. In addition, results were compared with those obtained by the UK National Materials Exposure Programme (NMEP) on chemical weathering rates. Differences in soiling and biological growth on sheltered and unsheltered samples, and their influence on limestone decay were established. The shelter is likely to reduce biological growth by modifying the micro-environmental conditions. However, it may also exacerbate dust deposition, which might increase decay rates in the long-term.     

The Armada Tapestries in the Old Palace of Westminster

The tapestry series of the ‘Defeat of the Spanish Armada’ was a national artistic treasure which hung in the old Palace of Westminster from the mid 17th century until the fire of 1834. This article outlines the creation of the tapestries in the 1590s and covers the major treatments of them in illustrations of parliamentary interiors and in John Pine's 1739 engravings; it ends with a short account of the curious episode of the tapestry which escaped the conflagration. In the absence of any known historical record of how the tapestries were displayed, suggestions are offered about how many and in what order they hung in the two chambers occupied successively by the house of lords (before and after 1801), and about how they were physically supported on the walls of the Parliament Chamber.     

南朝观象台在今南京大行宫考

通过对历史文献、方志的梳理和最新考古的发现,考据出南朝观象台(灵台)建于南京当时台城(宫城)西南角的西墙城墙上,该处城墙内面有鸾锦门。此观象台位置在今南京大行宫,即南京图书馆新址附近。纠正了刘宋时期南京北极阁为观象台之说。北极阁实为南朝日观台旧址,日观台与观象台其性质、功能完全不同。     

故宫的价值与故宫博物院的内涵

故宫与故宫博物院密切相关,对故宫价值认识的程度,影响着对故宫博物院内涵的理解与功能的定位。故宫人对文物及其价值的认识有一个逐步深化的过程。博物馆不只是收藏“人类和人类环境的见证物”,更要在收集、保护、研究和传播上下功夫。故宫的古建筑不只是一个“壳”,更是中华传统文化的一个载体和标志,也体现了建筑艺术中各民族文化的交流和融合。在反映宫廷历史文化方面,故宫及其藏品可称为是明清皇家生活方式的标本,值得深入挖掘、整理和利用。从传统的古物概念扩展到保护文化遗产,是故宫人对故宫价值认识的一个飞跃,故宫不仅要保护有形的,而且要高度重视、努力抓紧保护无形的文化遗产。     

“二里头五期”遗存分析及其相关问题

所谓“二里头五期”遗存,实质上是包含了不同年代、不同时期遗存的混合体,化性质与二里头化—至四期不同,属早商化。二里头二号宫殿的废弃、偃师商城小城之始建以及郑州商城开始进入最繁盛期的时间大体同步,均是在二里头四期(或先商第一段第Ⅱ组)与早商第二段第Ⅲ组之际,表明夏商分界当在此时。     

雍正引见绿营武官的相关问题

本文在考辨官员引见资料的基础上,结合相关史料,对雍正朝引见的绿营武官的籍贯、民族、身份、年龄等问题作了详尽的数据表列并进行分析,说明了当时选武官轻视武举人、重视战功等现象,揭示了武官的区域分布和民族构成及其与政治社会的关系。     

安徽省图书馆藏《正德三年进士登科录》的修复

2013年初,为配合古籍数字化,安徽省图书馆开始修复馆藏《正德三年进士登科录》。通过分析破损现状、查找相关资料、咨询修复专家、制订修复方案、选配纸张、清洗书页、修补书页、书皮及托纸、修整书页、装订书册、残片修复与函套制作、完善修复记录,经精心修复,修复质量合格、效果满意。论文着重探讨了"古籍修复需要讲究依据"、灵活运用"修旧如旧"原则、保留修复资料等相关问题。此修复研究可为行业修复此类古籍提供相关借鉴。