Abstract
This work focuses on the characterisation of the heritage building materials (plasters, mortars, bricks and glazed tiles) of the Tsogt Palace’s ruins located in the Bulgan Province of Mongolia. In addition, contribution is also given to a preliminary evaluation of their state of conservation in consideration of the climate conditions to which the site is exposed. To accomplish the objectives, information on the climate and historical context have been acquired. A set of analytical methodologies has been applied on the seventeen samples collected: Polarized Light (PLM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), X-Ray Diffraction (XRPD), Raman Spectroscopy and Ion Chromatography (IC). The data obtained allowed us to achieve a mineralogical and petrographic characterisation of the samples, underlining the nature of the binder in mortars and plasters, the type of clay used as raw material for bricks and tile, their hypothetical firing temperature and the aggregate composition. Moreover, it was also possible to identify the colouring coating typology in tiles and their process of production. Regarding the state of conservation, the principal deterioration phenomena affecting the site due to environmental impact can be also hypothesised, even though major studies are necessary for an exhaustive assessment.
Highlights
Historical buildings and archaeological sites are a precious source of knowledge of the history and identity of a society and its interaction with the surrounding environment
A high number of research studies centred on the mechanisms by which anthropogenic pollution induces damage to cultural heritage indicating the ever-increasing interest in this issue alongside the effect of climate change [4,5,6,7,8]
The obtained results allowed us to highlight the probable use of calcic lime as a binder in mortar and plaster samples, while the sample of material collected from the pile near the ruins resulted to be a mixture of calcic and magnesian lime, and not likely used for their production
Summary
Historical buildings and archaeological sites are a precious source of knowledge of the history and identity of a society and its interaction with the surrounding environment. Sporadic are the evaluations of impacts of climate change on monuments and archaeological sites outside Europe, above all in Asia and in Mongolia. In these regions, the mineralogical and petrographical characterisation of building materials in heritage sites is far from being considered a necessary step to be planned and implemented for the assessment of the damage imposed by changes in climate. The research conducted and illustrated represents a starting point for the investigation of Mongolian archaeological sites to carry out an exhaustive characterisation of the building materials (plasters, bedding mortars, bricks and tiles) and to contribute to a first evaluation of the state of conservation due to the environmental impact
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