Identification of the Pigments on the Mural Paintings from an Ancient Chinese Tomb of Tang Dynasty Using Micro-Raman and Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy Analysis

Abstract

The tomb of Hanxiu, a prime minister of the Tang dynasty who died in 740 CE, was decorated with elaborate mural paintings. The pigments used in the mural paintings were collected from representative colours before a restoration process and analyzed using micro-Raman and scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) analysis to characterize the chemical compositions. The results reveal the chromatic palette and the painting technique used in the mural paintings. Most of the pigments are natural mineral pigments similar to those excavated in previous archaeological works, except the yellow pigment is unusual. A rare mineral pigment, vanadinite [Pb5(VO4)3Cl], was employed in a large amount as the yellow pigment. This phenomenon was analyzed and compared with tomb mural paintings from varied periods and locations in ancient China. Notably, the identification of vanadinite via Raman spectra has to be performed carefully and combined with an elemental analysis to avoid misidentification.

Integrated Investigations of Painting Materials in the Sasanian City of Ardaxšīr Khwarrah, near Firuzabad (Southern Iran)

“…While the occurrence of the yellow ochre in the palette of painters in the history of Persian painting is well documented [32], it is interesting to mention that the yellow minerals of the apatite group have been previously reported in the late Sasanian [22] and early Islamic wall paintings in Iran [33], the historical period that is well-matched with the paintings of Firuzabad. Crocoite was found in Egyptian funerary artefacts mixed with limonite and calcite [34] and in a Chinese mural painting belonging to the Tang dynasty [35].…”