Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published 2007 | public
Book Section - Chapter

A stone kneeling figure in the Art Institute of Chicago: new evidence from scientific investigations and archaeological finds in China

Abstract

An ancient stone sculpture of a figure kneeling with hands bound behind him was bequeathed to the Art Institute of Chicago in 1950 and for many years had no known counterpart. Comparable finds are now confirmed by a group of similar figures discovered since 1984 at several archaeological sites in the Chengdu plain of China's southwestern Sichuan province, which are datable to the late second millennium B.C. E. Unlike those recently unearthed figures, carved of more roughly textured, yellowish gray or dark green stones, some of which preserve traces of pigment that partially highlight their facial features, the Art lnstitute's example bears a smooth and shiny blackish green surface. Questions about the nature of this surface--whether coated with a paintlike film and/or darkened by heating- prompted a thorough investigation of the figure. Nondestructive techniques such as in situ Raman microscopy, x-ray diffraction, environmental scanning electron microscopy, and near infrared reflectance spectroscopy were used to fully characterize the sculpture. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was employed to shed light on the nature of applied materials such as fills, surface accretions, and possible coatings. Results of these extensive scientific examinations, evaluated together with experimental tests of heating and polishing as well as with relevant archaeological evidence recently brought to light, have enhanced our understanding of the surface treatment of this fascinating and hitherto enigmatic sculpture.

Additional Information

© 2006 Archetype Press. This collaborative research project was funded through a grant by the A. W. Mellon Foundation for a pilot program in conservation science between the Art Institute of Chicago and Northwestern University's Department of Materials Science and Engineering. The Chengdu Institute of Archaeology is thanked for access to the site and permission to photograph and study the figurines. Janet G. Douglas is thanked for advice on the heating experiments and for her expert opinion on the AIC's kneeling figure. X-ray facilities at Northwestern University are supported by the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) program of the National Science Foundation (NSF-DMR-0076097); Jerry Carsello is gratefully acknowledged for technical assistance. The ESEM work was performed in the Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC), Nanoscale Integrated Fabrication, Testing and Instrumentation Center (NIFTI) (Keck-II) facility of the Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center (NUANCE) at Northwestern University. NUANCE Center is supported by NSF-Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), NSF-MRSEC, Keck Foundation, the State of Illinois, and Northwestern University; the assistance of Ben Meyers during ESEM work is also gratefully acknowledged. The authors would also like to acknowledge Jenny So, Chinese University of Hong Kong, whose questions inspired initial studies of the surface of the AIC kneeling figure, and Wen Guang of the Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, who initially proposed theories of heat treatment on its surface.

Additional details

Created:
August 19, 2023
Modified:
October 17, 2023