In situ investigation of Chinese export watercolours in the nineteenth century: pigments and dyes

Chinese export watercolours were produced for the export market in the southeastern part of China during the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. These hand-painted images were produced in large numbers with a variety of water-based opaque colours on paper. Pigment analysis was carried out on 37 painted areas of selected works from a private collection using a range of techniques, including micro-X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (µXRF), FTIR and Raman spectroscopy. These analytical results provide the first in-depth measurements of the painting materials by the techniques on these export artworks. Several pigments were identified conclusively by the analyses—barium white, lead white, Prussian blue, ultramarine, emerald green, Hooker’s Green, gamboge and red lead. Results also suggest that violet tint, purple and red dyes might be present.