Abstract:Unearthed relics easily grow mildew at exhibition sites due to extremely high relative humidity. At the Han Yang Ling Mausoleum, located at Xi’an, China, the relative humidity is around 95%±5% perpetually. The environmental conditions of the 15th burial pit at the Han Yang Ling Mausoleum were investigated digitally and a twodimensional mathematical model of the conservation area of the burial pits relics was established according to certain hypotheses. Air curtain technology was used to isolate the relics from the viewing area. Based on this model, a digital computation was carried out using a standard kε turbulence model and the SIMPLE algorithm. In this investigation, the influence of the inlet velocity and elevation angle to the air curtain isolation performance was studied. This study shows that the appropriate inlet velocity of the air curtain for the 15th pit is 1.5 m/s with an elevation angle of 10 degrees. This study provides basic guidance for creating air curtain isolation and high nitrogenlow oxygen condition in high relative humidity environments. The method is instructive and meaningful for the protection of pit relics.

Abstract:The Taozhu city wall, built in the Ming dynasty, is the most completely preserved ancient garrison city wall in Zhejiang, and is a key unit of the protected national cultural relics. Investigation of the current status of the wall shows that major types of damage include partial collapse, bloating, and mortar erosion. The internal causes are structural strength defects and the lack of a waterproofing system; the external factors are rain and plant growth. These problems are common in the southeast coastal areas of China. Based on these factors, the characteristics of the wall and a review of protective measures use for othr ancient city walls, a preliminary protection plan is presented for the Taozhu city wall. Our investigation can be used as a reference for protective measures at other sites.

Abstract:The study addresses the urgent need to protect architectural paintings at the Foguang Temple. These ungrounded paintings face much damage, including the peeling off of pigments, fading and cracking. Orthogonal experiments were done on entailing compounding of two traditional protection materials:the gum of Bletilla striata (Thunb) Rchb. f. and fish collagen. These experiments show that the best formula for strengthening and protecting architectural paintings with no plaster layer is (weight percentile):3% fish collagen and 0.1% gum of Bletilla striata, as the effective reinforcement ingredients, coupled with 0.5% fungicide (PTA), 0.1% of UV absorbers (BP4) and 0.1% antistatic agent. This formulation shows excellent performance in terms of reinforcing, antifungal and antiUV aging properties. This is a good choice for the reinforcement and protection of the architectural paintings at the Foguang Temple and other similar sites.

Abstract:Taer Lamasery is of very high value because of its Buddhist historical and cultural importance. The electrical storm of August 30,1 caused some damage to the fire security equipment and high voltage distribution system at ShiLuntan and DaJiewa Hall. Potential lightning strikes seriously threaten the safety of monks and tourists. An antilightning protective system is very necessary and is urgently needed for the historic buildings of Taer Lamasery. Based on the characteristics of the buildings’ geographical environment, climate features and risk of lightning strikes, new protection measures, both internal and external, are proposed. The external protective system consists of a lightning rod installed in the path of lightning so as to meet flash in advance, and a protection zone installed on the top of the building to meet the secondary flash. In this way, the external protective system effectively prevents or reduces the direct lightning strikes. The internal lightning protection system utilizes the techniques of shielding, appropriate wiring, equipotential connections, and power and surge protectors at the entrance and exit routes of the building. The internal protective system prevents and reduces the danger of inductive electric wave invasion. Analysis shows that proposed lightning protective system at the Taer Lamasery is feasible, and has great reference value for protection of other ancient buildings with similar environment.

Abstract:A newly unearthed bronze jar of the Sui Dynasty was restored based on an investigation and assessment of its state of preservation. One of the main objectives was to reveal its relevant archaeological and scientific information during the restoration. Some information about the material quality and manufacturing technology of the bronze jar was acquired by means of optical microscopy, Xray fluorescence, Xray inspection XRay Inspection and scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectral analysis. Other principles related to the conservation of unearthed cultural relics are also discussed.

Abstract:In this study the leather collectibles of the Inner Mongolia Museum and the Hulunbuir Nationality Museum were analyzed in order to understand the effect of temperature and humidity on the leather. Degradation phenomena of leather collectibles from the Inner Mongolia area were classified and illustrated as described in Silk Collectibles Disease and Illustration (WW/T 00132008). Information was collected on tear force, tensile strength, load elongation and some other physical and chemical properties of the leather samples, before and after their aging by dampheat aging methods. This work provided a preliminary analysis of the influence of temperature and humidity on tanned leather samples and will be helpful to understand causes of the degradation of leather cultural relics. The experiments show that change of humidity is the main cause for degradation of leather cultural relics, which also has an obvious influence on the physical and chemical properties of various tanned leather cultural relics.

Abstract:Wooden artifacts excavated in Gansu are a precious heritage, reflecting the culture, history, and society along the ancient Silk Road in the Hexi corridor, and are very different in type and style from artifacts discovered at Wuwei and Gaotai. These artifacts with significantly wooden textures and structural characteristics should be categorized as rotten wood. The tree species and textural characteristics of these unearthed wooden artifacts were identified using biological methods. Identification of the wood types shows that they belong to several types of tree, including spruce, fir, Sabina chinensis, larch, Populus diversifolia, elm, cedrela sinensis. Microscopic fiber characteristics and structure were observed by scanning electron microscopy and Xray diffraction, which indicated that the wood structure of these artifacts are degraded and decayed. Furthermore, the wood structure and characteristics may change according to the preservation environment and other factors. Relevant physical parameters such as crystallinity and degradability of unearthed artifacts were measured with the result that the cellulose crystallinity is about 58% and the cellulose degradability is up to 40%. Taking all these results together, it can be concluded as that:1) the texture of the wooden artifacts indicates that many species were used, with spruce (Picea crassifolia), which is widely distributed in the Qilian Mountains, being the main species; 2) these wooden artifacts are mostly decayed and degraded as manifested by a decrease of fiber (cellulose and hemicelluloses) and an increase in lignin which is a significant cause of wood darkening; 3) the wood structures are characterized by instability and vulnerability to damage; 4) the crystallinity and degradability of cellulose are critical parameters that need to be measured to assess the physical condition of such rotted wooden artifacts.

Abstract:Buried glazed pots are apt to exhibit various sorts of damage due to impact of physical and chemical factors. Exfoliation of the glazed layers is one of the most common ones. This paper describes studies by microscopic observation, elemental analysis, thermal expansion coefficient analysis and water absorption tests of glaze exfoliation of Tang dynasty pots excavated from four archaeological sites in Shanxi and Henan provinces. The study shows that the glaze of Huangye kiln samples, in Gong County, is better preserved and shows little exfoliation compared with samples from three other archaeological sites, including the Huangbao kiln in Tongchuan city, the Liquanfang kiln in Xi’an city and the Tomb of the Yide Prince in Qian County; later specimens are severely exfoliated. Further research indicates that the essential causes of the glaze exfoliation are related to 1) the different thermal expansion coefficient rates of the body and glaze of the pottery and 2) the low degree of sintering of the pottery body.

Abstract:In recent years, a large number of white porcelain pieces have been unearthed in Hangzhou. Those pieces, especially the Ding style ones, have attracted the strong attention and interest of archaeologists and amateurs. Opinions about the production age and provenance vary. Combining thermoluminescence and Xray fluorescence analysis technologies, research on these Ding style white porcelain objects unearthed in Hangzhou were carried out. The results indicate that these white porcelains are produced in the late Northern Song Dynasty or early Southern Song Dynasty. According to the composition of porcelain body, which has high Al2O3 levels ranging from 24.78% to 33.06%, they are typical products from the northern China. The bodies also have a trace element composition and the glaze a calcium and magnesium base composition similar to Ding porcelain from Hebei province. This research provides the scientific basis for studying trade and cultural communication between the Song and Jin dynasties.

Abstract:Jade beads unearthed at the Huating site in Xinyi, Jiangsu Province, appeared loose and chalking. When someone touches or moves the beads, they may shed some powder or even break into pieces. The phenomenon indicates that the jade has weathered seriously. The jade samples were tested by Xray diffraction (XRD), section polarizing microscopic observation, Xray fluorescence analysis (XRF) and optical?microscopic observation. The result shows that the jade is made of antigorite. Taking into account the degree of damage to these jade beads, they were reinforced with a 14% solution of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and reinforced with a 3% solution of fluororubber for surface protection. A total of 107 jade beads from the Huating Site in Xinyi were strengthened successfully in this way. This research should benefit the future conservation of fragile and weathered ancient jades.

Abstract:Jade (nephrite) is an admired and salient feature of Chinese culture. The identification of the origin of nephrite in objects is important for archaeology, conservation and appraisal. Currently, many of the techniques used for the nephrite mineral analysis cannot be used for the cultural relics because most of them are destructive, lack quantitative accuracy and utilize complicated data analysis. In this paper, nearinfrared spectroscopy and chemometrics were used for identification of nephrite from Hetian China, Qinghai China, Russia and Korea. Experiments show that this method can identify nephrite from the four origins quickly, accurately and nondestructively. This work provides a new feasible approach for identifying the origins of jade relics.

Abstract:Raman microscopy(RM), scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive Xray spectroscopy (SEMEDX) and Xray powder diffraction (XRD) were applied to analyze four green pigments collected from different places. The studies indicated that the four samples all contained both Cu and As and as cornwallite [Cu₅(AsO₄)₂(OH)₄], lavendulan [NaCaCu₅(AsO₄)₄Cl·5H₂O] and emerald green [Cu( CH₃COO)₂·3Cu(AsO₂)₂] In China, emerald green was once widely used in bronze repairs and for coloring buildings. A green pigment containing the elements Cu and As was once generally considered to be emerald green, but the identification of cornwallite and lavendulan in ancient artifacts suggests new possibilities.

Abstract:This paper analyzes the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of heritage sites and affecting factors in the Turpan area based on geographic information system (GIS) data and the third heritage census information. Conclusions are as follows:1)The topographic factors (elevation, slope and aspect) have a certain impact on the spatial distribution of heritages:heritage sites are scattered spatially on a small scale.2)The spatial distribution of water and roads in the study area also has a certain influence on the distribution of heritage sites:the longer the distance to roads and water, the fewer heritage sites were found.3)In arid areas, extreme shortages of water and drought conditions have a direct connection to the distribution of heritage sites. 4)Most heritage sites are found in the vicinity of Jiaohe and Gaochang. Reasons for this could be low altitude, rich vegetation and abundant water.

Abstract:Taxidermies, an important component of natural history museums collections, having high value for research and exhibition, are prone to be attacked by different pests because of the abundant amounts organic matter in them. The use of toxic chemicals to protect taxidermies against damage by pests has led to great environmental damage, as well as public health concerns. A number of novel methods for the prevention and treatment of pests have been studied in order to find the alternative and environmentfriendly methods. Although a great number of taxidermies are stored in natural history museums in China, studies for the controlling and eradicating pests have lagged behind, hindering the development of museums in China. This review summarizes update pest control methods and comprehensively analyzes information regarding both the processes for making taxidermies and the damage caused by pests, providing reference material for museum work.

Abstract:In order to protect the “Han Dynasty painted clouds and beast lacquer Zun”, cleaning, strengthening, reproduction matrix and mending methods were used to repair this relic. The method is simple and easy to adopt. This research offers a good reference on the protection and repair of lacquer relics.