Chemical-technological research and radiocarbon AMS dating of wall painting fragments from the ruins of the XIIth-XIIIth centuries AD church from archaeological excavations in the city of Smolensk, Russia

• Main Authors: Konstantin Voronin, Mariya Kabanova
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: SpringerOpen 2020-05-01
• Series: Heritage Science
• Subjects: Russia; XIIth-XIIIth century AD; Church; Wall paintings; AMS radiocarbon dating; XRD
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40494-020-00389-w

Abstract In 2012, the ruins of a temple of the old Russian period were found during archaeological research in the medieval historical territory of Smolensk. The archaeological complex consists of the ruins of an ancient temple, built in the middle of the XIIth century AD, and adjacent to it from the South-West of the territory, which housed the remains of the market XI-turn XIII-XIV centuries AD and necropolis XIII–XVI centuries AD. Chronologically diverse use of the investigated territory up to the XVIth century AD was determined by the nearby Church. Approximately 1000 fragments of wall paintings, 5 fragments window glass and 4 glazed floor tiles were found near the ruins of the Church building. For the first time fragments of wall paintings medieval of Old Russian temple were dated by the AMS radiocarbon dating and went through chemical-technological research (analysis of the plaster foundation, the definition of used pigments) by X-RAY diffractometry (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDS). Optical microscopy also was used for visual observations of the samples of the wall painting. According to the results of the radiocarbon analysis, the fragments of the wall paintings were divided into two chronological groups. The earlier belongs to the last quarter of the XIIth–the first quarter of the XIIIth century AD. Samples of the wall paintings from the second group are dated back to the third quarter of the XIIIth century AD. A narrow range of Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating of fragments of the murals, obtained from carbonates due to the presence of high content of C14 isotope in carbon of the plaster, is simultaneous in age to the moment of creation of the plaster base. As a result of chemical and technological researches of the fragments of the wall paintings it was established that the plaster basis of the fragments of the wall painting consists of two layers. The plaster base contains organic binders. Chemical and technological analysis of pigments presents the following results: (1) the basis of the blue paint layer is ultramarine (mineral) and anatase (mineral); (2) the basis of the green paint layer is celadonite (mineral); (3) the basis of the brown paint layer is ochre (clay); (4) black particles in the colorful mixture of brown is an organic wood coal pigment.