Three fabricated pigments (Han purple, indigo and emerald green) in ancient Chinese artifacts studied by Raman microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry and polarized light microscopy

In this study, we analyzed three fabricated pigments from ancient artifacts in China. The purple pigment was obtained from a painted pottery figurine unearthed from the Chu Tombs group of the Western Han dynasty in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province. The dark blue dye was from silk textiles in the Palace Museum. The green pigment was from decorative paintings on ancient architectures in the Palace Museum. These pigments were analyzed with Raman microscopy (RM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analytic spectroscopy and polarized light microscopy (PLM). By comparing their Raman spectra with standard samples, the primary ingredients of the purple pigment and the dark blue dye were found to be Han purple and indigo, respectively. However, the green pigment could not be identified by RM because of strong fluorescence. It was then confirmed to be emerald green by using EDX analytic microscopy and PLM. We also describe the traditional manufacturing methods of these pigments and their applications on artifacts in Chinese history. Copyright (c) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.