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- Title
Copper-Red Glass Beads of the Han Dynasty Excavated in Yunnan Province, Southwestern China.
- Authors
Zhou Gu; Wugan Luo; Xiaochenyang Jiang; Nian Liu; Yanan Fu; Lili Zhang; Min Yang; Yimin Yang
- Abstract
Indo-Pacific glass beads were widespread in South, Southeast, and East Asia, as well as in Africa, and studies of these beads in China will contribute much to our understanding of early Chinese glass exploitation and maritime exchange. In this study, five tiny opaque red beads found in Muyi Cemetery, Yunnan Province, southwestern China, and dated to the Han dynasty (202 B.C.E.-220 C.E.) were analyzed to determine their production technology and to explore their possible provenance. Chemical analysis demonstrated that these beads are potash glass with higher CaO and Al2O3, which may have been imported from Southeast Asia, and that copper was the major coloring agent. These beads provide new evidence for early communication and trade networks between China and Southeast Asia, and for the production technology of Indo-Pacific beads. SR-µCT and SR-XRD have been shown to have a great potential in research on ancient glass beads, especially the latter, which could disclose the nature of the crystal inside the glass samples because X-rays will penetrate them during testing.
- Subjects
GLASS beads; GLASS art; BEADS; CHINESE antiquities
- Publication
Journal of Glass Studies, 2020, Vol 62, p11
- ISSN
0075-4250
- Publication type
Article