Nondestructive analysis of faience beads from the Western Zhou Dynasty, excavated from Peng State cemetery, Shanxi Province, China

Abstract

The faience in China suddenly appeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046–771 BC), and its production is considered to be influenced by the West. In this paper, the microstructure and chemical compositions obtained by synchrotron radiation micro-computed tomography (SR-μCT) and μ-probe energy dispersion X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (EDXRF) were combined to disclose the manufacturing information of faience beads excavated from Peng State cemetery in Hengshui, Shanxi Province, China, dated to the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046–771 BC). Based on inner structural features obtained by SR-μCT, it was found that these faience beads could be divided into two types: glazed faience and glassy faience. According to the structural information revealed by the CT slices, it is inferred that these beads were first formed on an organic cylinder and then glazed using the direct application method. The possible sources of copper colorant are copper ores. In addition, the glaze chemical compositions are distinct from Na₂O–CaO–SiO₂ glaze or glass in the West, and thus, Western Zhou faience should have an indigenous origin in China. Furthermore, the manufacturing features are consistent with the techniques of proto-porcelain during the same time period, but the glaze recipe is distinct from that of proto-porcelain and early glass in China. Consequently, it is proposed that faience in the Western Zhou Dynasty was not the precursor of early glass in China.