Natural and synthetic arsenic sulfide pigments in Japanese woodblock prints of the late Edo period

Abstract

We recently described the use of an artificial arsenic sulfide pigment in Japanese woodblock prints from the Meiji period (1868–1912): we now expand on our previous work by investigating arsenic sulfide pigments used in Japanese woodblock prints of the late Edo period (1615–1868) and early Meiji period. The series of eight prints A Tour of the Waterfalls in Various Provinces (Shokoku Taki Meguri), by Katsushika Hokusai, issued between 1833 and 1834 is known to have been reproduced from entirely new blocks at some point during the late Edo or early Meiji periods. The two sets, original and copies are characterized by visually distinct color palettes as well as several differences in the image. Two such sets in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art were analyzed with particular attention to the yellow, orange, and green printed areas. X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, Raman microspectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive spectroscopy revealed the use of natural orpiment in the original set and of artificial arsenic sulfide pigments in the reproduction set. In addition, the reproduction set features extensive use of ultramarine blue, the synthetic equivalent to lapis lazuli. This pigment, available commercially in Europe from 1830 onward has been documented in Japanese art so far only in a handful of late Edo period paintings. The results of our comparative analysis further highlight differences in pigment use between Edo and Meiji periods, and point to arsenic sulfide pigments as useful markers for the date of original production for popular prints of the Edo period.