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The great variety of manuscripts found in the Turfan oasis at the Start of the twentieth Century by Grünwedel and Le Coq reflects the cultural backgrounds of, and communication among, the people who travelled along the network of Eurasian trade routes. Specifically, this Connection is directly reflected by the use and distribution of inks, pigments, and papers. Research is now underway to examine these and a report on the initial findings is given below.
The paintings and manuscripts discovered in the sealed ‘library cave’ in Dunhuang, Western China, contain the earliest surviving examples of Tibetan artistic and scribal practice (9the10th centuries AD). Despite their importance, their material characteristics have not previously been studied. The present paper discusses the results of the analysis of paper and pigments in a selection of items across a variety of forms and functions: (i) Buddhist manuscripts, (ii) official letters, (iii) hung paintings, (iv) ritual items, (v) banners, and (vi) stencils and preliminary sketches. The material analysis of these items is presented in historical context, to address three research questions. First, whether there is a correspondence between the materials used in the creation of these objects and their geographical origin. Second, in terms of the choices made in the available materials and techniques, whether there is a detectable correlation between materials chosen and the intended function of the objects. Third, whether the characteristics of the objects analysed here be considered to be part of a broader Central Asian artistic and scribal culture. The authors conclude that a local culture of paper and pigment production can be detected in these results, though further research is needed especially on the geographical origin of raw materials for pigments. The results show that artists and scribes made technological choices in paper and pigments depending on the function of the objects they were creating. Finally, understanding of the broader Central Asian context of these results will depend on future analysis of material from other archaeological sites, and comparison with the results of this study.
In this paper, members of three research teams, namely the Turfan Project of the Berlin BrandenburgAcademy of Sciences and Humanities, the Berlin-based research project on pigments in Central Asianpaper manuscripts, and the Hamburg-based project on the history and typology of Central Asian papermanuscripts, present some of the results of their cooperation. The investigated manuscripts belong tothe Berlin Turfan Collection. On the basis of different examples the contribution of scientific methods tophilological scholarship within a multidisciplinary approach is demonstrated.