2022/04/18 by Omid Oudbashi, Omid Oudbashı, Atefeh Shekofteh +1
Arts and Humanities · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Building materials and conservation #Cultural Heritage Materials Analysis #Mineralogy and Gemology Studies
paper · doi:10.1080/00393630.2022.2062562
crossref issued 2022/04/18 · crossref published 2022/04/18 · crossref published-online 2022/04/18 · openalex publication_date 2022/04/18 · crossref created 2022/04/19 · crossref deposited 2023/05/25 · crossref published-print 2023/07/04 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref indexed 2026/07/29 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
The red-surfaced flooring plaster of three Persepolitan palaces built during the reign of Darius I, namely the Treasury, Edifice C of the southern area of the terrace, and Tachara, the king’s private palace, were investigated by a chemical and microscopic approach using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that the flooring plaster was formed of two distinct layers, a thick (2 cm) internal white one made of a mixture of calcite (CaCO3) and rock fragments, and a thin external red layer with variable thicknesses ranging from 0.2 to 1.5 mm, made of a mixture of calcite and hematite (Fe2O3) and also small fragments of rock. An interesting aspect of the red layer is the presence of cinnabar (HgS) as red pigment mixed with hematite in Tachara, while the red colour has been provided by hematite alone in the two other floorings. Though the analytical results are in line with previous studies on Tachara flooring, it also revealed that the decorative red layer of Tachara differs from the Treasury and Edifice C. This analytical study clarified general technical aspects of decorative red-surfaced flooring in Persepolis.