Analysis of Modern Chinese Paper and Treatment of a Chinese Woodblock Print

Tsai, Fei Wen; Reyden, Dianne van der

doi:10.1080/03094227.1997.9638598

Cited by 17 publications

(15 citation statements)

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“…In nearly a 2000-year history of making and using papers, Chinese papermakers have been, although less often so after the middle nineteenth century AD and rarely nowadays, practicing a very time-consuming, complicated, and heavily handmade-centered papermaking technology, which included (but was not limited to) fermentation, cooking, bark removal, rinsing, beating, cutting, pulping, sheet formation, and drying (Tsai and van der Reyden 1997). The newly formed paper sheets resulting from such a process often vary greatly in their physical and chemical properties, due to intentional or unintentional manipulation of one or more procedures in preparing different fiber sources (inner bark of trees, grass species, etc.)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A multi-analytical approach to investigate date-unknown paintings of Chinese Taoist priests

Zhou

et al. 2015

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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This article presents a technical investigation into a set of four artist-and date-unknown paintings of Chinese Taoist priests, which aimed to reveal their fiber source, painting technique, starch-based adhesive, and pigment use for the purpose of future conservation treatment. By using an integrated approach (Herzberg staining, cross-sectioning, starch grain analysis, X-ray fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction), it turned out clear that (1) bamboo was the primary (if not the only) fiber source; (2) multiple layers were utilized in combination with simply outlining and filling, while paintings were in preparation; (3) wheat flour, a starch-based adhesive, was used to hold together the painting paper and the paper supports underneath; and (4) vermilion, emerald green, synthetic ultramarine blue, orpiment, lead white, and carbon black were used to produce the six main colors on the paintings. The discoveries of emerald green and synthetized ultramarine blue placed the earliest possible manufacturing dates of these paintings around the 1830s.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A multi-analytical approach to investigate date-unknown paintings of Chinese Taoist priests

Zhou

et al. 2015

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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“…The raw materials used in Xuan papermaking are mostly bark fibres of blue sandalwood (Pteroceltis tatarinowii), growing in calcium-rich soil, and rice straw (Oryza sativa) growing in silica-rich soil (Tsai and Van der Reyden 1997). It has been shown that inorganic minerals precipitate within and between plant fibres, the formations being called 'phytoliths' (Tsai and Van der Reyden 1997;Li 2018). It is thought that the long blue sandalwood fibres constitute the backbone of Xuan paper, while the short rice fibres provide softness (Zhao et al 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is thought that the long blue sandalwood fibres constitute the backbone of Xuan paper, while the short rice fibres provide softness (Zhao et al 2018). A higher content of blue sandalwood is used for 'superior quality' papers and is used for artworks due to more suitable physical properties (Tsai and Van der Reyden 1997;Li 2018). With respect to raw material use, three grades of Xuan paper are available commercially (Mullock 1995;Tsai and Van der Reyden 1997;Wu et al 2016):…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterisation and durability of contemporary unsized Xuan paper

et al. 2020

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In China, Xuan paper has been the paper of choice as artwork support and for conservation, for several centuries. However, little is known about its material properties, especially given the many grades of sized and unsized Xuan paper. In addition, there is a lack of information on its degradation. In this research, a selection of contemporary unsized Xuan papers was investigated, representing diverse raw materials. Seven out of twelve contemporary unsized Xuan papers were determined to be approximately neutral and contain > 2% alkaline reserve, indicating good durability. Viscometry was used to determine the degree of polymerisation (DP) as none of the samples gave significant reactions to the phloroglucinol spot test. The average DP of ten contemporary unsized Xuan papers is ~ 1700, excluding two papers that have presumably been sun-bleached, and that exhibit significantly lower DP. Using X-ray fluorescence, it can be demonstrated that Ca and Si are the dominant elements and interestingly, Ca content is directly correlated with ash content and with alkaline reserve. Accelerated degradation was performed at two sets of environmental conditions, i.e. 90 °C, 30% RH and 60 °C, 70% RH, and the established degradation rates agreed with the Collections Demography model of paper degradation meaning that degradation of Xuan papers proceeds in the same way as other types of paper. This research gives fundamental insights into contemporary unsized Xuan papers, which exhibit good stability during accelerated degradation despite the low starting DP in the context of the samples used in this study. Our findings may inform methods of Xuan paper production, selection of Xuan paper for conservation purposes, as well as preventive conservation of Xuan paper-based artefacts.

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“…Over the past two decades, multi-analytical studies have been increasingly carried out on papers handmade in pre-1949 China, for the purpose of conservation (e.g., Brown et al 2017;Gong, Bo, and Gong 2014;Shi and Li 2013;Tsai and van der Reyden 1997;Wang et al 2014), dating (He et al 2010;Helman-Ważny 2016;Li et al 2009) or assessment of authenticity (Li et al 2017), and exploration of applicable and reliable new, analytical methods (e.g., Li 2010;Liu 2015;Yang, Guo, and Gong 2011). Some (e.g., Gong, Bo, and Gong 2014;Helman-Ważny 2016;Li et al 2017;Shi and Li 2013) pay close attention to fibre identification and see it as crucial to understanding the manufacture of Chinese handmade papers more fully.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying sources of fibre in Chinese handmade papers by phytoliths: A methodological exploration

2018

STAR: Science & Technology of Archaeological Research

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This paper proposed phytoliths as promising for identifying and distinguishing sources of fibre in Chinese handmade papers. For an initial methodological exploration, two types of Raw Xuan (unprocessed Xuan paper) and the two plant materials used in making them-namely rice straw and bark from blue sandalwood (Pteroceltis tatarinowii Maxim.)-were collected. The dry ashing method was used to extract phytoliths from Raw Xuan and its plant materials. The results can be summarized as follows. First, phytoliths characteristic of rice (Oryza sativa) were abundant in both rice straw and Raw Xuan. By looking for rice phytoliths, it is possible to tell whether or not rice straw fibre is used in a particular paper. Second, hair cell phytoliths were observed in considerable quantities in blue sandalwood bark, but absent in the examined papers. Heat experiments showed that phytoliths in blue sandalwood were resistant to longterm heat and they would unlikely be eliminated when exposed to the heat in papermaking (with heat source barely above 200°C). It is hypothesised that they dissolved while cooked in an alkaline pH (limewater). Further studies are necessary to understand whether phytoliths in blue sandalwood-while cooked in limewater-undergo morphological changes and, if yes, how.

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Analysis of Modern Chinese Paper and Treatment of a Chinese Woodblock Print

Cited by 17 publications

References 1 publication

A multi-analytical approach to investigate date-unknown paintings of Chinese Taoist priests

A multi-analytical approach to investigate date-unknown paintings of Chinese Taoist priests

Characterisation and durability of contemporary unsized Xuan paper

Identifying sources of fibre in Chinese handmade papers by phytoliths: A methodological exploration

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