Study of identification results of proteinous binding agents in Chinese painted cultural relics

Abstract

Abstract Binding material is a key component of painted cultural relics, and research on binding agents (“binders”) is of great significance for the study of the history and preservation of cultural artefacts. In this work, our team collected 129 painted samples from 28 ancient cultural relics located in 9 provinces of China. We used an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as well as immunofluorescence microscopy (IFM) to identify proteinous binders in these samples. Our results show that 51 painted samples were found to contain animal glue, 13 samples were found to contain egg ovalbumin, and 2 samples were found to contain casein. Two mural painting samples prepared in the Ming and Qing Dynasties (14–20 century AD) from the Jiazaerjia Mountain Grottoes in Sichuan province were found to contain casein, and this is the first time that casein binders were found in Chinese painted cultural relics. On top of our detection results, this paper also reports statistics on the chronology, geographical distribution, and artwork types in which organic binders are found, and provides evidence of the use of proteinous binders in Chinese painted cultural relics.