Premium
Identification of Green Pigment Used in P ersian Wall Paintings ( ad 1501–1736) Using PLM , FT – IR , SEM / EDX and GC – MS Techniques
Author(s) -
Samanian K.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
archaeometry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.716
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1475-4754
pISSN - 0003-813X
DOI - 10.1111/arcm.12102
Subject(s) - painting , persian , oil painting , cultural exchange , art , ancient history , visual arts , history , philosophy , linguistics
The technique of oil painting was introduced to I ran via a cultural exchange with E urope in the S afavid period ( ad 1501–1736). Since the first attempt at scientific conservation of wall paintings in I ran in the 1960s, the nature of green pigment used in P ersian wall paintings has not been clear, although work on contemporary miniature paintings has identified malachite and verdigris. PLM , FT – IR , SEM / EDX , GC – MS and the study of contemporary historical treatises of the S afavid period were the main tools used in the present study to identify the green pigments in P ersian (oil‐based) wall paintings. Eight samples taken from the two famous S afavid buildings, Chehel Sotoon Palace and the Sukias House in I sfahan, were analysed. Here, the identification of copper‐based pigment and of verdigris in oil as oleate amends the existing knowledge of the green pigment used in these paintings. It also suggests that oleate was introduced to P ersian artists via the E uropean influence on P ersian painting as a result of cultural exchange in the S afavid period, when the technique of P ersian painting changed from tempera to oil painting. However, as verdigris in oil and resin can appear as oleate over time, it is unknown whether the P ersian artists did this deliberately or accidentally.