Benzonelli, A;
Freestone, IC;
Martinón-Torres, M;
(2023)
Effects of alloy composition in traditional Japanese shakudo patination.
PLoS ONE
, 18
(11)
, Article e0289728. 10.1371/journal.pone.0289728.
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Abstract
Japanese craftspeople have dominated the art of patinating copper-alloys since the 15th century, using precise alloy compositions and complicated patination processes in different hot solutions to create a variety of colours on swords fittings such as tsuba. While this complex tradition is increasingly popular in the East, the reasons behind the choices made by craftspeople in the selection of the components of the alloys and are still not fully understood. This paper investigates the effect of different alloying elements (tin, gold, and silver) on the resulting patina. Experimental results are compared with optical and compositional analyses on historical Japanese artefacts, confirming the effects of the different alloying elements on the patina characteristics and colour. The absence of tin and the presence of gold limit the growth of an oxide layer and promote the formation of a thin patina characterised by a smooth appearance without visible grains. Therefore, a limited thickness of the patinas is a key aspect for the production of the desired colour and appearance of the patinas. The first colorimetric analysis on historical Japanese artefacts demonstrates the influence of gold, silver and tin in the final patina colour, validating the observations in the experimental replicas.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Effects of alloy composition in traditional Japanese shakudo patination |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0289728 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0289728 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third-party material in this article are included in the Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10183148 |
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