Archaeometric Analysis of the Kaaba Covers with Metal Thread in the Topkapı Palace Museum and the Contribution of these Investigations to the Science of Conservation

Abstract

Our country, which has hosted various civilizations from prehistoric times to the present and which is at an important transition point, has been more or less influenced by all cultures. This led to the development of textile technology and ultimately to the emergence of unique textile products. Our country is one of the few countries in the world with its collections and an abundance of cultural heritage assets. One of these collections is textile works. The textile objects collection consists of ethnographic objects such as carpets, rugs, plain weaves, as well as palace fabrics. When palace fabrics are mentioned, it is understood that the clothes and daily use items of the sultans and members of the dynasty, which were kept in bundles together since the period of Mehmed the Conqueror (Mehmed II) in the Ottoman Empire, and which have survived to the present day. The palace fabrics in Turkey are preserved in the Sultan’s Clothes Section of the Topkapı Palace Museum, and there are approximately 2500 different types of textile objects. These artifacts have been preserved until the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, from Mehmed the Conqueror, and have survived to the present day. As an invaluable part of the cultural material heritage, various historical textiles and the materials used in their production bear witness to the social past. Throughout history, complex fabrics, especially silk fabrics woven with gold and/or silver threads, symbolized high status in society and always have been very valuable. By the archaeometric methods and techniques used today, it is worked to characterize the historical textiles and to determine the deterioration of products. In this study, two Kaaba covers belonging to the Ottoman Period and dated to the 16th century, found in the Sultan’s Costumes Section of the Topkapı Palace Museum, were examined. A total of 9 samples were taken from both historical textiles, including the metal thread samples. The features of the three main materials used in historical textiles, fiber, dye and metallic yarns, were investigated using various archaeometric methods and techniques. An optical microscope was used for the preliminary inspection, technical properties (warp/weft density, yarn twist direction) and documentation, and high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array-detection (HPLC-DAD) were used for dyestuff analysis. In addition, the scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) was used to determine the type of core yarn, general morphology, and chemical composition of the metallic and corrosion products in metal threads. According to the results obtained by HPLC-DAD, probable dye sources determined in the colored samples are lac insect, madder, dyer sumac, weld and anyone from oak, gallnut, pomegranate plants. According to the analysis results obtained with SEM-EDX, it was determined that the metallic strip used in the metal threads was first produced by drawing and then rolling, and also by gold coated on silver as a chemical composition. These results obtained using the archaeometric methods and techniques will guide conservation experts in the future in determining the appropriate conservation and restoration methods.

Keywords

• extile objects
• archaeometric methods
• conservation
• deterioration
• metal thread

Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi’nde Bulunan Klapdanlı Kâbe Örtülerinin Korunmasına Yönelik Arkeometrik İncelemeler ve Bu İncelemelerin Koruma Bilimine Katkısı

Abstract

Bu çalışmada, Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi Padişah Elbiseleri Seksiyonu’ndaki Osmanlı Dönemi’ne ait ve 16. yüzyıla tarihlendirilen iki adet Kâbe örtüsü inceleme kapsamına alınmıştır. Her iki eserden klapdan numuneleri de dahil olmak üzere toplam 9 numune elde edilmiştir. Tekstil eserlerde kullanılan üç ana malzeme lif, boya ve metalik ipliklerin özellikleri çeşitli arkeometrik yöntem ve teknikler kullanılarak incelenmiştir. Ön inceleme, teknik özellikler (çözgü/atkı sıklığı, iplik büküm yönü) ve belgeleme için bir optik mikroskop ile boyarmadde analizleri için diyot dizi algılamalı yüksek performanslı sıvı kromatografisi (HPLC-DAD) kullanılmıştır. Ayrıca, klapdan ipliklerde çekirdek ipliğin türü, genel morfoloji, metalik şeridin kimyasal bileşimi ve korozyon ürünlerinin tespiti için enerji dağılımlı X-ışını spektroskopisine (EDX) sahip taramalı elektron mikroskobu (SEM) tekniğinden yararlanılmıştır. HPLC-DAD ile elde edilen sonuçlara göre, renkli numunelerde belirlenen muhtemel boya kaynakları lak böceği, kökboya bitkisi, boyacı sumağı, muhabbet çiçeği ile meşe palamudu, mazı gomalağı, nar kabuğu bitkilerinden herhangi biridir. SEM-EDX ile elde edilen analiz sonuçlarına göre, klapdanlarda kullanılan metalik şeridin önce çekme daha sonra haddeleme yöntemi ile ve ayrıca, kimyasal kompozisyon olarak gümüş üzerine altın kaplama yapılarak üretildiği tespit edilmiştir. Arkeometrik yöntem ve teknikler kullanılarak elde edilen bu sonuçlar, uygun koruma ve onarım yöntemlerinin belirlenmesinde ileride koruma uzmanlarına rehberlik edecektir.

Keywords

• Tekstil eserler
• arkeometrik yöntemler
• koruma
• bozulma
• klapdan

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