摘要
Abstract
This study examines a gilded silver-lead core lacquer dish unearthed from the tomb of Wang Jian,founding emperor of the Former Shu Kingdom(907-925 CE)during the Five Dynasties period.This artifact demonstrates both exquisite craftsmanship and a complex structural composition.Partial gilding adorns the inner wall,while the core consists of alternating layers of silver-tin alloy and lead alloy encased in lacquer.Although much of the outer lacquer coating had peeled off during excavation,visible traces remained.Analysis of the dish's preservation state revealed notable differences between layers:the outer silver layer exhibited a smooth texture with fine grains,whereas the inner layer was rough and porous,confirming a two-layered structure.Based on this,advanced analytical methods,including super depth-of-field microscopy,scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometry(SEM-EDS),and X-ray diffraction,were employed to comprehensively examine the morphology,structures,materials and phases of both the gilding layer and the core.
Microscopic observation revealed that the inner surface of the dish was engraved with decorative patterns,then partially gilded,and subsequently modified with edge-engravings.
A mercury-rich interface was identified between the gilding layer and the core,composed primarily of Au(42.42％),Ag(22.75％),and Hg(12.79％),representing a distinctive feature of gilded silverware craftsmanship.This interface was likely formed due to mercury's high solubility in silver and thermal-induced expulsion of mercury,which facilitated inter-atomic solid diffusion.
Beneath the gilding layer,the dish contained two layers of silver-tin core,with higher contents of Ag and Hg and a small amount of Sn at the interface between the two layers.The average Hg content at the interface was 11.65％,whereas the two core layers contented 0.39％and 0.00％Hg,respectively.The silver-tin core primarily consisted of Ag3Sn,Ag,and AgCl,while the interface was mainly composed of Ag2Hg3,Ag and AgCl.Based on these differences in Hg content and phase compositions,it is inferred that mercury functioned as a binder between the silver-tin alloy cores.Mercury,liquid at room temperature,can react with various metals or alloys to form amalgams.Both historical documents and foreign studies recorded the use of mercury as a binder.In this case,Hg reacted with Ag3Sn and Ag in the core to form Ag2Hg3,ensuring a tight bond between the cores.This represents one of the rare publicly known physical cases using mercury as a binder,offering valuable insights into its application in ancient Chinese craftsmanship and the history of science and technology.关键词
王建墓/鎏金银器/富汞/粘接剂Key words
Tomb of Wang Jian/Gilded silver artifact/Mercury rich/Binder分类
历史学
