Thirty-seven glass beads excavated from the Han Dynasty tombs in Hepu county, Guangxi, China, were analyzed using a portable X-ray fluorescence (PXRF) spectrometer. Reference sample Corning glass D is used to check precision and accuracy of the equipment for major and minor components. The results of inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy and PXRF are compared to evaluate the quality of equipment for trace elements. Combined with the contents of Al 2 O 3 and CaO, a new criterion of subgroup division for potash glass based on the levels of trace elements (Rb and Sr) is proposed. The correlations of Rb and K, Rb and Al, and Sr and Ca are discussed. It is thought that saltpeter was the main flux used to produce potash glasses of different groups. The positive correlation between Rb and Al, and Rb and K indicates that potassium aluminosilicate minerals may be used as raw minerals for potash glasses of group II. The results indicate that the levels of Rb and Sr can be very helpful in subgroup definition and provide useful clues to the raw materials used for glassmaking and provenance study of the potash glass found in Guangxi, China.

A total of 33 ancient glass beads unearthed from the Kizil reservoir cemetery and Wanquan cemetery in Xinjiang are studied using Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy‐dispersive spectrometry (SEM–EDS) and other methods. The detailed study of the glassy matrices, the crystalline inclusions and the microstructural heterogeneities for these glass beads has revealed some valuable information to help in the understanding of their possible manufacturing technology and provenance. At least two different types of glass were present in the two cemeteries. For the first time, antimony‐based colourant/opacifier—for example, Pb2Sb2O7 or CaSb2O6—was systematically identified in some beads of plant‐ash type soda–lime glass dated to about 1000–500 bc. The limited number of potash glass beads from the Kizil reservoir cemetery, which were dated to about 500–300 bc, used tin oxide as an opacifier. The diverse resources of the soda–lime and potash glasses indicate the existence of a complex trade network between China and the West much earlier than the Western Han Dynasty.

In this paper, a portable energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer was used for the nondestructive analysis of 41 leadbarium-silicate glass artifacts dated from the Warring States Period to the Han Dynasties (475 BC-220 AD). These glasses mainly are ornament, funeral and ritual vessels unearthed from different provinces of China. Based on the chemical compositions obtained, the affects of surface weathering on the quantitative results, the characteristics of chemical compositions and the colorants were discussed. Meanwhile, referred to the research results reported and historical background, the raw materials, the distribution, the cause, the origin and the production center of the lead barium glass were also discussed. The present research provides new valuable information for tracing the origin and transfer of glassmaking techniques of ancient China.