Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet
Abstract This paper presents a scientific examination of wall paintings at two nonmonastic sites in Gyantse, Tibet: Gazhi Lhakang, which is a family temple built in the mid-eighteenth century by local aristocrats, and the Lotso Residence, which was occupied by Nepalese merchants in the early twentie...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SpringerOpen
2019-06-01
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| Series: | Heritage Science |
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| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40494-019-0282-x |
| _version_ | 1818442208621101056 |
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| author | Xinhui Yang Xinyan Ji Yongkang Cao Taoyi Yu |
| author_facet | Xinhui Yang Xinyan Ji Yongkang Cao Taoyi Yu |
| author_sort | Xinhui Yang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract This paper presents a scientific examination of wall paintings at two nonmonastic sites in Gyantse, Tibet: Gazhi Lhakang, which is a family temple built in the mid-eighteenth century by local aristocrats, and the Lotso Residence, which was occupied by Nepalese merchants in the early twentieth century. Samples were analyzed with optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. Two phases of painting—an early phase and a late phase—were identified in Gazhi Lhakang, including three distinct types of mural stratigraphy. The earlier phase features an unusual technique known as “paperhanging”, wherein the pigments were applied on a layer of Tibetan paper glued to the wall. The later phase at Gazhi Lhakang and the painting of the Lotso Residence feature a relatively simple wall treatment with fewer coating layers and no ground layer. A typical mixture of clay and sand was used for the coating layers, while the structure slightly varied from what has been described in the literature. The techniques of powder embossing, gilding, and gold outlining were adopted in both buildings. The metallic material found at Gazhi Lhakang is a gold-silver alloy, while copper was used as imitation gold at the Lotso Residence. Mineral pigments, such as azurite, malachite, orpiment, cinnabar, and iron oxide, were used for both phases of Gazhi Lhakang. Modern synthetic pigments, such as chrome yellow, emerald green, and synthetic ultramarine, were used for the Lotso Residence, indicating that it was painted after the mid-nineteenth century. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T18:40:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-058b59bc20ac4fa2b408a1e3cada169f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2050-7445 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T18:40:30Z |
| publishDate | 2019-06-01 |
| publisher | SpringerOpen |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Heritage Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-058b59bc20ac4fa2b408a1e3cada169f2022-12-21T22:51:29ZengSpringerOpenHeritage Science2050-74452019-06-017111210.1186/s40494-019-0282-xStudies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, TibetXinhui Yang0Xinyan Ji1Yongkang Cao2Taoyi Yu3International Research Center for Architectural Heritage Conservation, Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityInternational Research Center for Architectural Heritage Conservation, Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityInternational Research Center for Architectural Heritage Conservation, Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityInternational Research Center for Architectural Heritage Conservation, Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityAbstract This paper presents a scientific examination of wall paintings at two nonmonastic sites in Gyantse, Tibet: Gazhi Lhakang, which is a family temple built in the mid-eighteenth century by local aristocrats, and the Lotso Residence, which was occupied by Nepalese merchants in the early twentieth century. Samples were analyzed with optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. Two phases of painting—an early phase and a late phase—were identified in Gazhi Lhakang, including three distinct types of mural stratigraphy. The earlier phase features an unusual technique known as “paperhanging”, wherein the pigments were applied on a layer of Tibetan paper glued to the wall. The later phase at Gazhi Lhakang and the painting of the Lotso Residence feature a relatively simple wall treatment with fewer coating layers and no ground layer. A typical mixture of clay and sand was used for the coating layers, while the structure slightly varied from what has been described in the literature. The techniques of powder embossing, gilding, and gold outlining were adopted in both buildings. The metallic material found at Gazhi Lhakang is a gold-silver alloy, while copper was used as imitation gold at the Lotso Residence. Mineral pigments, such as azurite, malachite, orpiment, cinnabar, and iron oxide, were used for both phases of Gazhi Lhakang. Modern synthetic pigments, such as chrome yellow, emerald green, and synthetic ultramarine, were used for the Lotso Residence, indicating that it was painted after the mid-nineteenth century.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40494-019-0282-xTibetWall paintingSynthetic pigmentsGilding |
| spellingShingle | Xinhui Yang Xinyan Ji Yongkang Cao Taoyi Yu Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet Heritage Science Tibet Wall painting Synthetic pigments Gilding |
| title | Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet |
| title_full | Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet |
| title_fullStr | Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet |
| title_full_unstemmed | Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet |
| title_short | Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet |
| title_sort | studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in gyantse tibet |
| topic | Tibet Wall painting Synthetic pigments Gilding |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40494-019-0282-x |
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