Next Article in Journal
Thermography Investigation and Seismic Vulnerability Assessment of a Historical Vaulted Masonry Building
Next Article in Special Issue
Novel Approaches to Enhancing Sustainable Adhesive System Solutions in Contemporary Book Binding: An Overview
Previous Article in Journal
The Shifting Baseline Syndrome and Generational Amnesia in Heritage Studies
Previous Article in Special Issue
Modeling Chemical Tests and Fiber Identification of Paper Materials Using Principal Component Analysis and Specular Reflection FTIR Data
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
Heritage
Volume 5
Issue 3
10.3390/heritage5030106
heritage-logo
Submit to this Journal Review for this Journal Propose a Special Issue
► Article Menu

Article Menu

share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite question_answer Discuss in SciProfiles thumb_up
...
Endorse textsms
...
Comment
first_page
settings
Order Article Reprints
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
Article

Polysaccharide Paint Binding Media at Two Pharaonic Settlements in Nubia

by
Kate Fulcher
1,*,
Neal Spencer
2,
Julia Budka
3 and
Rebecca J. Stacey
1
1
Department of Scientific Research, British Museum, London WC1B 3DG, UK
2
The Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1RB, UK
3
Egyptian Archaeology and Art History, LMU Munich, 80333 Munich, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Heritage 2022, 5(3), 2028-2040; https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5030106
Submission received: 29 June 2022 / Revised: 22 July 2022 / Accepted: 28 July 2022 / Published: 2 August 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Organic Materials in Heritage Science)
Browse Figures
Review Reports Versions Notes

Abstract

:
Paints and plasters from two pharaonic settlement sites in Nubia (northern Sudan) were analysed to investigate the presence and origin of organic binding materials. The town of Sai was founded around the time of the pharaonic conquest of Kush (Upper Nubia) around 1500 BC, with Amara West created as a new centre for the pharaonic administration of the region around 1300 BC. Recent fieldwork at both sites yielded examples of paint palettes, including several from houses. These provide a different economic and social context to funerary contexts upon which most previous research has been conducted, making this study the first to report on binding media for vernacular architecture in the Nile Valley. It is also the first study of binding media from Nubia. Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of methanolysed and silylated paint and plaster samples revealed a range of monosaccharides present in eight of the seventeen samples from Amara West, and in six of the seven samples from Sai. Interpretation of the data was supported by field collection and study of locally available botanical gums. The results indicate that mixtures of gums were in use as a pigment binder at both sites during the mid- to late-second millennium BC. The possibility that some of these plant gums could have been imported from the Mediterranean is also posited.

1. Introduction

1.1. Background and Aims

The study of ancient Egyptian paint and painting technology has focused more on the pigment components than the binding media [1,2], as pigments provide the most visible property of paint: colour. Moreover, they can be characterised by the minimally destructive analytical methods that are preferred for museum artefacts, and most are more resistant to degradation than organic binding media. The limited published research on binding media indicate the predominance of polysaccharide gums in ancient Egyptian paint binding, although protein binders have sometimes been reported [3,4,5,6].
To date, no examples of binding media from ancient Nubia have been published. This study focuses on paint materials from two sites in northern Sudan—Sai and Amara West—dating to a period of Pharaonic rule in Nubia (c. 1500–1070 BC) and seeks to examine how paint binding technology compares with that in use in contemporaneous Egypt. The excavated sites provide particular opportunities for such research as finds of bulk paint materials offer greater potential to identify binding media through sampling, and finds from domestic contexts may reveal different perspectives than the information gleaned from elite contexts such as burial goods or painted tomb decoration.

1.2. The Sites

The two sites considered in this study, founded by the Egyptian state to control and administer the region and facilitate the extraction of resources, provide opportunities to investigate aspects of lived experience, cultural entanglement, production and resource management in the context of pharaonic colonialism in northern Sudan during the New Kingdom.
The town on Sai Island, located on a large island approximately halfway between the Second and Third Cataracts, was founded during, or soon after, the initial conquest of the region in the early 18th Dynasty (c. 1500 BC) [7], and was occupied throughout the remainder of the period of Egyptian rule. Two sectors within the walled town, SAV1 West and SAV1 East, were excavated by the AcrossBorders project [7,8] and yielded ceramic sherds containing paint [9]. All of the samples used in the current study were excavated in SAV1 West, which featured a street and domestic residences. The samples were found near the town enclosure wall, in deposits rich with ceramics, which range in date from the early to late 18th Dynasty.
The town of Amara West, 20 km downstream of Sai (Figure 1), was founded around two centuries later than Sai, in the reign of Seti I (c. 1300 BC) and was occupied until the late 11th century BC, though burials in the cemetery continued into the 8th century BC [10]. Fieldwork undertaken by the British Museum’s Amara West Research Project (2008–2019) uncovered a large quantity of materials relating to painting: small lumps of natural and human-made pigments, ceramic sherds re-used as palettes to mix paints, grindstones with traces of pigment, painted walls and features within houses and the remains of painted wooden coffins placed in the tombs [11]. The largest concentration of material was found in area E13, in a facility (E13.14) used for both storage and production activities, then partly re-purposed as workshops (E13.29, E13.31). These areas were subsequently converted into houses by the insertion of additional walls and doorways (E13.7, E13.3, E13.6), around the same time that a ‘suburb’ developed outside the town walls, with notably larger dwellings (e.g., house D12.5).
The investigation of the binding media in the paint materials reported here was carried out alongside an extensive multi-analytical study of the pigments used at both sites. Some 300 pigments from Amara West were investigated [11] and twenty-six from Sai [9]. At both sites, the analyses identified yellow and red ochres (iron oxides with natural admixtures); whites made from gypsum, anhydrite (dehydrated gypsum), calcite, or, more rarely, huntite; blues were Egyptian blue, except for four palettes at Amara West which were identified as riebeckite [12]. At Amara West, bitumen and carbon blacks were identified [13] and a few greens: copper chloride from a grindstone, green earth chlorite on some palettes and a single example of mixed Egyptian blue and yellow ochre [12]. Mixtures with white, especially with ochres, were observed at both sites [9,11].

1.3. Approach

Study of the binding media was undertaken using molecular analysis by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to detect polysaccharide binding media in the paints and plasters and identify the plants from which they were sourced. Previous infrared spectroscopy analysis did not suggest the presence of proteins [9,11], and all of the paints presented a powdery appearance, rather than glossy [14], so the presence of proteins was not investigated in this study.
Plant gums are predominately composed of polysaccharides—polymers comprising monosaccharides bound together by glycosidic linkages. Cleavage of these linkages by hydrolysis allows the monosaccharides and corresponding uronic acids to be analysed by GC-MS and identified [15]. To some extent the original plant gum used can be determined from the types of monosaccharides present and their relative quantities. Published analyses of plant gums report the presence of the monosaccharides arabinose, fucose, xylose, mannose, rhamnose, galactose and glucose in varying quantities [15,16,17,18]. The complex polysaccharides in plant gums can vary from tree to tree, even among the same species. Sudanese Acacia, for example, has been reported as having both significant and negligible amounts of rhamnose [19,20]. To investigate this phenomenon in the relevant geographical area, modern Acacia nilotica gums from near the site of Amara West were analysed.

2. Samples

Seven samples from Sai, and seventeen samples from Amara West, were studied (Table 1), selected for their range of colours and volume of material available. All the samples were taken from paint on ceramic palettes or from pieces of wall plaster, which allowed for large volume sampling (0.5 to 1 g) thereby maximizing the potential for recovery of organic binder. Reference samples of Acacia (gum Arabic), Prunus (plum), and Astragalus (tragacanth) were taken from the British Museum Reference Collection.
Modern gum samples were collected from eight Acacia trees on Ernetta Island (20°49′ N, 30°21′ E), located in the Nile between Sai and Amara West (Figure 1), in February 2017. Trees extrude gum in response to damage, which may be accidental or deliberately inflicted to stimulate gum production for later collection [22]. In this case, gum was harvested from previously damaged areas. Targeted trees were those with the spiny leaves, yellow pom-pom flowers and circular seed pods (Figure 2) that identified them as Acacia nilotica (also known as Vachellia nilotica) [23], a species whose seeds were found in houses at both sites [24,25]. Five samples were amber-coloured fresh gum, some still sticky when picked; three samples were dried and blackened (Figure 3).

3. Method

All samples were analysed at the British Museum. The analytical method followed the standard procedure used at the British Museum for the preparation of polysaccharide samples for GC-MS analysis of neutral sugars and uronic acids, which is based on the method published by Bleton et al. [15]. Samples and reference samples were powdered before being hydrolysed by the addition of 500 µL of 0.5 M hydrochloric acid, heated at 80 °C for 20 h. The solution was decanted and dried under nitrogen. The dry hydrolysed extracts were derivatised by the addition of 300 µL Sigma-Sil A (1:3:9 ratio of trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS), hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) and pyridine), and heated at 80 °C for 2 h. Samples were dried under nitrogen and dissolved in 100 µL hexane in preparation for injection into the GC-MS instrument. Blanks were prepared alongside the samples using the same method.
Derivatised samples were separated using an Agilent HP5-MS column (30 m × 0.25 mm, 0.25 µm film thickness with 1 m × 0.53 mm retention gap) with splitless injection at 300 °C and 10.1 psi and a purge time of 0.5 min. The carrier gas was helium with a flow at 1.5 mL/min. The oven was set at 40 °C to 130 °C at 9 °C/min, then to 290 °C at 2 °C/min, with the final temperature held for 10 min. Two instruments were used. Samples from Amara West and Ernetta Island were analysed using an Agilent 5973 MSD operating in the electron impact (EI) mode at 70 eV and scanning over the range m/z 50 to 550. Samples from Sai were analysed using an Agilent 5977 MSD operating in the electron impact (EI) mode at 70 eV and scanning over the range m/z 50 to 800. Total ion chromatograms were extracted for ions m/z 217 and 204 to view any furanoside and pyranoside compounds in the sample [15,26], and data were interpreted using the NIST database version 2.3, reference samples (run on both MSDs), and examples in the literature (Table 2). Interpretation requires a combination of retention time and spectral features, since the method separates multiple epimers with near identical spectra.

4. Results

Six of the seven samples from Sai, and eight of the 17 paint samples from Amara West, contained identifiable monosaccharides. Details of the molecular profiles for all samples are summarised in Table 2 and example chromatograms are presented in Figure 4. Minor differences in retention times in the data presented are due to the use of two separate instruments for AW435 and Sai154 (see Method). Samples AW435 and T1 were analysed using the same instrument, but before and after a shut-down period in 2020 (due to COVID-19 lockdown), leading to minor retention time shifts resulting from instrument maintenance.
The samples of amber-coloured gum (T1–3 and T7–8) from Acacia nilotica trees on Ernetta Island all produced very similar chromatograms, with very large peaks for arabinose, smaller peaks for galactose, and minor peaks for rhamnose and the uronic acids (Figure 5). The black-coloured gum samples contained minor amounts of arabinose and galactose, but their major constituent was an inositol, possibly D-pinitol (Figure 6 and Figure 7).
Table 2 also lists the monosaccharides identified in the reference samples and analyses of plant gums reported in the literature.

5. Discussion

Interpretation of gum spectra from ancient samples is not straightforward, as degradation over time leads to change in the chemical composition. In addition, as Table 2 illustrates, variation in monosaccharides occurs even across reference spectra of the same species in fresh material. Therefore, any identification of specific species must be tentative at best. Significant changes in climate and plant use in Nubia since ancient times make comparisons to modern flora difficult [34]. The range of gums thought to have been available to ancient Egyptians originate from species in the genera Acacia (also known as gum Arabic) and Astragalus (e.g., tragacanth), and fruit gums [35]. Other sugary substances would have included honey and fruit juices.
The amber-coloured samples of acacia gum collected from trees on Ernetta Island gave very similar chromatograms to each other, and aligned with analyses of modern samples of Acacia nilotica from Sudan reported in the literature (Figure 5 [20,30]). In the blackened gums, a compound identified as an inositol, possibly D-pinitol, was observed as the major component (Figure 6 and Figure 7). D-pinitol has been previously identified in Acacia nilotica [36], and probably indicates degradation by bacterial attack [37]. A study of black mummification balms, that identified inositols as one of the components, concluded that vegetable tannins were used [38]; another possibility is the presence of degraded gum.
Fucose is not found in Acacia gums or fruit gums, but is reported for tragacanth; mannose is found in fruit gums but not in Acacia or tragacanth [18,37], although one study reported mannose in tragacanth gum [29]. The presence of fucose and mannose in several samples from both Amara West and Sai therefore suggests that a mixture of gums was used. A similar result was reported for paint samples from one New Kingdom object (17, mummy mask) and two Third Intermediate Period objects (21, mummy mask; 22, falcon) from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston [39]. The authors concluded that the binders may have included tragacanth but were probably a mixture of gums.
There is a significant presence of glucose in the ancient samples. Plant gums do not typically contain glucose [33,35], although a small amount was detected in the tragacanth reference sample and has been reported by other studies [37]. Other analyses of paint from ancient Egyptian objects, of similar date to the samples studied here, have also detected glucose, which has been interpreted as implying the presence of a sucrose source such as plant juice or honey mixed with the gum [6,35,40]. However, glucose can also originate from degraded cellulosic matter, which may be derived from ancient inclusions of plant material (such as fibres or associated wood) but could also be introduced from modern packaging or labelling materials.
The analysis of local acacia gum indicated that the monosaccharides from these trees are consistent amongst themselves, and blackened (aged) samples mainly consisted of an inositol. This supports the conclusion that the binding media gums from Sai and Amara West were not composed exclusively of acacia gum, and may have been procured from a range of local sources, the full range of which is unknown, or imported from further away. A much larger range of data on ancient sources of gum would be required to draw firm conclusions. Acacia was available locally, and has been identified in the archaeological remains at both sites, as have two kinds of fruit tree, sycamore fig (Ficus sycomorus) and doum palm (Hyphaene thebaica), which could also have provided sugary substances potentially used as binders [24,25]. Tragacanth (Astragalus sp.) is thought to have grown in Turkey and the east coast of the Mediterranean [35]; pistacia resin and bitumen were imported from the same area [41]. Both bitumen and pistacia resin—materials used as pigment and varnish, respectively—have been identified at Sai and Amara West [9,13], along with ceramics from the eastern Mediterranean and Levant [42,43]. Trading networks that would allow the supply of binding materials from the eastern Mediterranean were clearly extant. Polysaccharide gums have been identified from elite funerary or religious contexts in ancient Egypt: on tomb and temple walls, coffins, and mummy masks, from the 18th Dynasty onwards [4,6,17,35,44,45,46,47]. However, comparable datasets from the indigenous Kerma culture urban and funerary sites, or from rural and desert sites in the hinterland of the major pharaonic settlements, are currently lacking. Only with such datasets will it be possible to develop a more nuanced understanding of the movement of materials and any divergences within and between settlements, or how the Egyptian colonial era witnessed the introduction and influence—or not—of painting practices from Egypt itself.
The identification of plant gum in the paint samples from Sai and Amara West demonstrates the use of gum binding media in paints, which may have been destined for projects such as temple decoration, the production of objects in workshops (e.g., samples from E13.29 and E13.31 at Amara West) and for decorated or whitewashed house walls and features. This use of plant gum is consistent with evidence from contemporaneous Egypt itself, and shows that the method for binding pigment into paint was common across types and scales of usage, from elite funerary objects to vernacular domestic architecture. No differences could be distinguished for pigment colour, location on site, or between the sites, and any differences noted may be due to differences in preservation rather than usage.

6. Conclusions

The study of securely provenanced samples from modern excavations at two pharaonic sites in Nubia has provided the first analytical evidence for the source of binding media in the paint used to decorate vernacular architecture from the Nile Valley, and the first report of binding media from any site in Nubia (northern Sudan). Furthermore, the identification of monosaccharides in several of the paint samples confirms that a plant gum was being used as a paint and plaster binder within the pharaonic towns of Upper Nubia during the New Kingdom occupation of the mid- to late second millennium BC. The presence in the ancient samples of monosaccharides usually found in different types of gum (fruit, tragacanth, Acacia) further suggests that a mixture of gums may have been used, some of which may have been imported from the eastern Mediterranean. This concurs with analyses from Egypt, albeit mostly of elite funerary objects, and suggests that plant gum binders were being used in a similar way in contemporaneous Egypt and Nubia, in both cases availing of materials imported from further afield. Multiple samples of gum taken from locally growing Acacia nilotica trees gave extremely similar chromatograms that were not a match for the ancient samples. Naturally blackened samples of the Acacia nilotica gum mainly consisted of inositol, which has also been identified in black mummy balm, possibly indicating the use of blackened gum in the balm.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, K.F. and R.J.S.; methodology, K.F. and R.J.S.; formal analysis, K.F.; investigation, K.F.; resources, K.F., R.J.S., N.S. and J.B.; data curation, K.F., N.S. and J.B.; writing—original draft preparation, K.F.; writing—review and editing, K.F., R.J.S., N.S. and J.B.; visualization, K.F.; project administration, N.S. and J.B.; funding acquisition, N.S., J.B. and K.F. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

Excavations at Sai were funded by the European Research Council project AcrossBorders from 2013 to 2017, ERC grant agreement no. 313668. British Museum Fieldwork at Amara West was funded by the Leverhulme Trust (grant F/00 052/C), British Academy (SG51563) and Qatar-Sudan Archaeological Project (QSAP A.007) from 2008 to 2019. The research on samples from these sites was conducted as part of an Arts & Humanities Research Council collaborative PhD between UCL and the British Museum (Grant 1350956). The project benefited from Wellcome Trust Grant 097365/Z/11/Z supporting the British Museum Department of Scientific Research and RJS salary.

Institutional Review Board Statement

Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement

Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement

Data is presented in the article.

Acknowledgments

The National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums in Sudan generously permitted the export of archaeological samples from both sites for analysis, which provided the opportunity for this study. Antony Simpson is thanked for assistance with maps and figures. Many thanks to anonymous reviewers who were instrumental in improving the text.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

  1. Lee, L.; Quirke, S. Painting materials. In Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology; Nicholson, P.T., Shaw, I., Eds.; Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK, 2000; pp. 104–120. [Google Scholar]
  2. Pagès-Camagna, S.; Guichard, H. Egyptian colours and pigments in French collections: Physicochemical analyses on 300 objects. In Decorated Surfaces on Ancient Egyptian Objects: Technology, Deterioration and Conservation Proceedings of a Conference Held in Cambridge, UK on 7-8 September 2007; Dawson, J., Rozeik, C., Wright, M.M., Eds.; Archetype in Association with the Fitzwilliam Museum and Icon Archaeology Group: London, UK, 2010; pp. 25–31. [Google Scholar]
  3. Scott, D.; Dennis, M.; Khandekar, N.; Keeney, J.; Carson, D.; Swartz Dodd, L. An Egyptian cartonnage of the Graeco-Roman period: Examination and discoveries. Stud. Conserv. 2003, 48, 41–56. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  4. Scott, D.A.; Swartz Dodd, L.; Furihata, J.; Tanimoto, S.; Keeney, J.; Schilling, M.R.; Cowan, E. An ancient Egyptian cartonnage broad collar: Technical examination of pigments and binding media. Stud. Conserv. 2004, 49, 177–192. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  5. Scott, D.; Warmlander, S.; Mazurek, J.; Quirke, S. Examination of some pigments, grounds and media from Egyptian cartonnage fragments in the Petrie Museum, University College London. J. Archaeol. Sci. 2009, 36, 923–932. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  6. Stacey, R. Paint media and varnishes. In The Nebamun Wall Paintings: Conservation, Scientific Analysis and Display at the British Museum; Middleton, A., Uprichard, K., Eds.; Archetype in Association with the British Museum: London, UK, 2008; pp. 51–60. [Google Scholar]
  7. Budka, J. Introduction. In AcrossBorders II: Living in New Kingdom Sai; Austrian Academy of Science Press: Vienna, Austria, 2020; pp. 15–27. [Google Scholar]
  8. Budka, J. AcrossBorders: Five seasons of work in the Pharaonic town. In From Microcosm to Macrocosm Individual Households and Cities in Ancient Egypt and Nubia; Budka, J., Auenmüller, J., Eds.; Sidestone Press: Leiden, The Netherlands, 2018; pp. 113–126. [Google Scholar]
  9. Fulcher, K.; Budka, J. Pigments, incense, and bitumen from the New Kingdom town and cemetery on Sai Island in Nubia. J. Archaeol. Sci. Rep. 2020, 33, 102550. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  10. Spencer, N. Building on new ground: The foundation of a colonial town at Amara West. In Nubia in the New Kingdom: Lived Experience, Pharaonic Control and Indigenous Traditions British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 3; Spencer, N., Stevens, A., Binder, M., Eds.; Peeters: Leuven, Belgium, 2017; pp. 323–355. [Google Scholar]
  11. Fulcher, K. Painting Amara West: The Technology and Experience of Colour in New Kingdom Nubia. British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 13; Peeters: Leuven, Belgium, 2022. [Google Scholar]
  12. Fulcher, K.; Siddall, R.; Emmett, T.F.; Spencer, N. Multi-Scale Characterization of Unusual Green and Blue Pigments from the Pharaonic Town of Amara West, Nubia. Heritage 2021, 4, 2563–2579. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  13. Fulcher, K.; Stacey, R.; Spencer, N. Bitumen from the Dead Sea in Early Iron Age Nubia. Nat. Sci. Rep. 2020, 10, 8309. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  14. Daniels, V. Analyses of copper- and beeswax- containing green paint on Egyptian antiquities. Stud. Conserv. 2007, 52, 13–18. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  15. Bleton, J.; Mejanelle, P.; Sansoulet, J.; Goursaud, S.; Tchapla, A. Characterization of neutral sugars and uronic acids after methanolysis and trimethylsilylation for recognition of plant gums. J. Chromatogr. A 1996, 720, 27–49. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  16. Marinach, C.; Papillon, M.-C.; Pepe, C. Identification of binding media in works of art by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. J. Cult. Herit. 2004, 5, 231–240. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  17. Scott, D. Ancient Egyptian pigments: The examination of some coffins from the San Diego Museum of Man. MRS Bull. 2010, 35, 390–396. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  18. Vallance, S.L.; Singer, B.W.; Hitchen, S.M.; Townsend, J.H. The development and initial application of a gas chromatographic method for the characterization of gum media. J. Am. Inst. Conserv. 1998, 37, 294–311. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  19. Anderson, D.M.W.; Karamalla, K.A. Studies on uronic acid materials. Part XII. The composition of acacia gum exudates. J. Chem. Soc. C Org. 1966, 762–764. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  20. Kapoor, V.P.; Farooqi, M.I.H.; Taravel, F.R.; Joseleau, J.P. Studies on Acacia nilotica gum exudates. Structural variation due to different habitats. Carbohydr. Res. 1991, 222, 289–293. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  21. Spencer, P. Amara West I: The Architectural Report. EES Excavation Memoir 63; Egypt Exploration Society: London, UK, 1997. [Google Scholar]
  22. Awad, S.S.; Rabah, A.A.; Ali, H.I.; Mahmoud, T.E. Acacia Seyal Gums in Sudan: A review. In Proceedings of the 7th Annual Conference for Postgraduate Studies and Scientific Research Basic Sciences and Engineering Studies, Khartoum, Sudan, 20–23 February 2016; Volume 6, pp. 94–98. [Google Scholar]
  23. POMO. Vachellia nilotica. Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Available online: http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org (accessed on 30 July 2022).
  24. Cartwright, C.R.; Ryan, P. Archaeobotanical research at Amara West in New Kingdom Nubia. In Nubia in the New Kingdom: Lived Experience, Pharaonic Control and Indigenous Traditions British Museum Publications on Egypt and Sudan 3; Spencer, N., Stevens, A., Binder, M., Eds.; Peeters: Leuven, Belgium, 2017; pp. 1–16. [Google Scholar]
  25. Heinrich, F.; Hansen, A.M. The enviromental remains. In AcrossBorders II: Living in New Kingdom Sai; Austrian Academy of Science Press: Vienna, Austria, 2020; pp. 275–363. [Google Scholar]
  26. Kamerling, J.P.; Gerwig, G.J. Strategies for the Structural Analysis of Carbohydrates. In Comprehensive Glycoscience Volume 2: Analysis of Glycans; Polysaccharide Functional Properties; Kamerling, H., Boons, G.-J., Lee, Y.C., Suzuki, A., Taniguchi, N., Vorage, A.G.J., Eds.; Elsevier: Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2007; pp. 1–68. [Google Scholar]
  27. Brennan, J.P.M. Manual on Taxonomy of Acacia Species; Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations: Rome, Italy, 1983; Available online: https://www.fao.org/3/Q2934E/Q2934E00.htm (accessed on 30 July 2022).
  28. Mills, J.S.; White, R. The Organic Chemistry of Museum Objects, 2nd ed.; Butterworth-Heinemann: Oxford, UK, 1999. [Google Scholar]
  29. Al-Hazmi, M.I.; Stauffer, K.R. Gas chromatographic determination of hydrolyzed sugars in commercial gums. J. Food Sci. 1986, 51, 1091–1092. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  30. Anderson, D.M.W. Chemotaxonomic aspects of the chemistry of acacia gum exudates. Kew Bull. 1978, 32, 529–536. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  31. Lluveras-Tenorio, A.; Mazurek, J.; Restivo, A.; Colombini, M.P.; Bonaduce, I. Analysis of plant gums and saccharide materials in paint samples: Comparison of GC-MS analytical procedures and databases. Chem. Cent. J. 2012, 6, 115. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
  32. Aspinall, G.; Baillie, J. Gum tragacanth. Part, I. Fractionation of the gum and the structure of tragacanthic acid. J. Chem. Soc. 1963, 1708–1714. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  33. Twilley, J.W. The analysis of exudate plant gums in their artistic applications: An interim report. In Archaeological Chemistry III; Lambert, J.B., Ed.; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, USA, 1984; pp. 357–394. [Google Scholar]
  34. Ryan, P. From raw resources to food processing. Archaeobotanical and ethnographic insights from New Kingdom Amara West and present-day Ernetta Island in Northern Sudan. In Exploring the Materiality of Food “Stuffs”: Archaeological and Anthropological Perspectives; Steel, L., Zinn, K., Eds.; Routledge: London, UK, 2016; pp. 15–38. [Google Scholar]
  35. Newman, R.; Serpico, M. Adhesives and binders. In Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology; Nicholson, P.T., Shaw, I., Eds.; Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK, 2000; pp. 475–494. [Google Scholar]
  36. Chaubal, R.; Pawar, P.V.; Hebbalkar, G.D.; Tungikar, V.B.; Puranik, V.G.; Deshpande, V.H.; Deshpande, N.R. Larvicidal activity of Acacia nilotica extracts and isolation of D-pinitol—A bioactive carbohydrate. Chem. Biodivers. 2005, 2, 684–688. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  37. Bonaduce, I.; Brecoulaki, H.; Colombini, M.P.; Lluveras, A.; Restivo, V.; Ribechini, E. Gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric characterisation of plant gums in samples from painted works of art. J. Chromatogr. A 2007, 1175, 275–282. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  38. Mejanelle, P.; Bleton, J.; Goursaud, S.; Tchapla, A. Identification of phenolic acids and inositols in balms and tissues from an Egyptian mummy. J. Chromatogr. A 1997, 767, 177–186. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  39. Newman, R.; Halpine, S.M. The binding media of ancient Egyptian painting. In Colour and Painting in Ancient Egypt; Davies, W.V., Ed.; British Museum Press: London, UK, 2001; pp. 22–32. [Google Scholar]
  40. Newman, R. Analysis of red paint and filling material from the sarcophagus of Queen Hatshepsut and King Thutmose, I. J. Mus. Fine Arts Boston 1993, 5, 62–65. [Google Scholar]
  41. Serpico, M.; White, R. Oil, fat and wax. In Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology; Nicholson, P.T., Shaw, I., Eds.; Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK, 2000; pp. 390–429. [Google Scholar]
  42. Budka, J. (Ed.) Pottery from SAV1 North. In AcrossBorders I, The New Kingdom Town of Sai Island, Sector SAV1 North Contributions to the Archeology of Egypt, Nubia and the Levant, 4; Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften: Vienna, Austria, 2017; pp. 119–156. [Google Scholar]
  43. Spataro, M.; Garnett, A.; Shapland, A.; Spencer, N.; Mommsen, H. Mycenaean pottery from Amara West (Nubia, Sudan). Archaeol. Anthropol. Sci. 2017, 11, 683–697. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  44. Daniels, V.; Stacey, R.; Middleton, A. The blackening of paint containing Egyptian blue. Stud. Conserv. 2004, 49, 217–230. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
  45. Le Fur, D. La Conservation des Peintures Murales des Temples de Karnak; Editions Recherche sur les Civilisations: Paris, France, 1994. [Google Scholar]
  46. McCarthy, B. Technical analysis of reds and yellows in the tomb of Suemniwet, Theban Tomb 92. In Colour and Painting in Ancient Egypt; Davies, W.V., Ed.; British Museum Press: London, UK, 2001; pp. 17–21. [Google Scholar]
  47. Stulik, D.; Porta, E.; Palet, A. Analyses of pigments, binding media and varnishes. In Art and Eternity: The Nefertari Wall Paintings Conservation Project 1986–1992; Corzo, M.A., Afshar, M., Eds.; Getty Conservation Institute: Santa Monica, CA, USA, 1993; pp. 55–65. [Google Scholar]
Heritage 05 00106 g001 550
Figure 1. Map of a portion of Egypt and Sudan showing the location of Amara West, Sai Island and Ernetta Island. Map drawn by Anthony Simpson and Kate Fulcher.
Figure 1. Map of a portion of Egypt and Sudan showing the location of Amara West, Sai Island and Ernetta Island. Map drawn by Anthony Simpson and Kate Fulcher.
Heritage 05 00106 g001
Heritage 05 00106 g002 550
Figure 2. Trees from which gum samples were taken on Ernetta Island. Left: leaves and flowers indicating species Acacia nilotica; Right, above: seed pods; Right, below: lump of gum on tree. Photographs: Kate Fulcher.
Figure 2. Trees from which gum samples were taken on Ernetta Island. Left: leaves and flowers indicating species Acacia nilotica; Right, above: seed pods; Right, below: lump of gum on tree. Photographs: Kate Fulcher.
Heritage 05 00106 g002
Heritage 05 00106 g003 550
Figure 3. Samples T1 to T8 taken from Acacia nilotica trees on Ernetta Island.
Figure 3. Samples T1 to T8 taken from Acacia nilotica trees on Ernetta Island.
Heritage 05 00106 g003
Heritage 05 00106 g004 550
Figure 4. Partial (13 to 40 min) extracted ion chromatograms (m/z 204 & 217) for obtained from samples AW435 (palette containing red ochre and calcite from E13.7.12) and Sai154 (palette containing yellow ochre, gypsum and calcite from SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 507).
Figure 4. Partial (13 to 40 min) extracted ion chromatograms (m/z 204 & 217) for obtained from samples AW435 (palette containing red ochre and calcite from E13.7.12) and Sai154 (palette containing yellow ochre, gypsum and calcite from SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 507).
Heritage 05 00106 g004
Heritage 05 00106 g005 550
Figure 5. Partial (13 to 38 min) extracted ion chromatogram (m/z 204 & 217) for Acacia sample (amber coloured) T1 from Ernetta.
Figure 5. Partial (13 to 38 min) extracted ion chromatogram (m/z 204 & 217) for Acacia sample (amber coloured) T1 from Ernetta.
Heritage 05 00106 g005
Heritage 05 00106 g006 550
Figure 6. Partial (13 to 38 min) extracted ion chromatogram (m/z 204 & 217) for blackened Acacia sample T6 from Ernetta Island.
Figure 6. Partial (13 to 38 min) extracted ion chromatogram (m/z 204 & 217) for blackened Acacia sample T6 from Ernetta Island.
Heritage 05 00106 g006
Heritage 05 00106 g007a 550Heritage 05 00106 g007b 550
Figure 7. Above: Mass spectrum of the most abundant component (peak at 33.3 min) in sample T6, blackened Acacia gum from Ernetta Island. Below: Mass spectrum for D-Pinitol, pentakis (trimethylsilyl) ether from NIST/EPA/NIH Mass Spectral Library (NIST 17) and NIST Mass Spectral Search Program (Version 2.3) from the NIST Mass Spectrometry Data Center, Gaithersburg, MD, USA.
Figure 7. Above: Mass spectrum of the most abundant component (peak at 33.3 min) in sample T6, blackened Acacia gum from Ernetta Island. Below: Mass spectrum for D-Pinitol, pentakis (trimethylsilyl) ether from NIST/EPA/NIH Mass Spectral Library (NIST 17) and NIST Mass Spectral Search Program (Version 2.3) from the NIST Mass Spectrometry Data Center, Gaithersburg, MD, USA.
Heritage 05 00106 g007aHeritage 05 00106 g007b
Table
Table 1. List of samples analysed. The description includes the colour of the paint or plaster and the mineral identification [9,11]. For Sai, the provenance designates the square and stratigraphic unit. For Amara West, provenance designates the grid/building/room followed by the stratigraphic unit [21].
Table 1. List of samples analysed. The description includes the colour of the paint or plaster and the mineral identification [9,11]. For Sai, the provenance designates the square and stratigraphic unit. For Amara West, provenance designates the grid/building/room followed by the stratigraphic unit [21].
Sample NumberFind NumberProvenanceDateDescription
Sai
Sai130SAV1W 0550/2015SAV1W, Sq. 1S, SU 679c. 1400 BCPalette with red ochre
Sai133SAV1W 0650/2015SAV1W, Sq. 1S, SU 698c. 1400–1300 BCPalette with huntite
Sai150SAV1W 0230/2015SAV1W, Sq. 1S, SU 630c. 1540–1300 BCPalette with Egyptian blue
Sai153SAV1W P045SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 537c. 1400–1300 BCPalette with yellow ochre, gypsum, calcite
Sai154SAV1W P048SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 507c. 1540–1300 BCPalette with yellow ochre, gypsum, calcite
Sai155SAV1W P051SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 585c. 1540–1400 BCPalette with anhydrite
Sai163SAV1W P069.1SAV1W, Sq. 1, SU 507c. 1540–1300 BCPalette with red and yellow ochre, gypsum
Amara West
AW119F17310E13.29.1 ((5230)c. 1200 BCPalette with bitumen
AW121F17311E13.29.4 (5243)c. 1180 BCPalette with bitumen, carbon
AW122F6190E13.31.2 (5332)c. 1200 BCPalette with gypsum, calcite
AW127F6170E13.6.4 (5341)c. 1200 BCPalette with Egyptian blue, gypsum
AW129F6079E13.29.4 (5222)c. 1180 BCPalette with yellow ochre, calcite
AW130F6147E13.31.1 (5325)c. 1180 BCPalette with red ochre
AW132yF6147E13.31.1 (5325)c. 1180 BCPalette with yellow ochre, anhydrite
AW132bF6147E13.31.1 (5325)c. 1180 BCPalette with Egyptian blue
AW133F6147E13.31.1 (5325)c. 1180 BCPalette with anhydrite
AW139F6281E13.29.3 (5246)c. 1180 BCPalette with carbon
AW141F6408E13.31.2 (5334)c. 1200 BCPalette red ochre, calcite
AW256 E13.7.6 (4566)c. 1200 BCGypsum wall plaster
AW259 E13.3.24 (4068)c. 1200–1180 BCGypsum wall plaster
AW323F7278D12.5.12 (2538)c. 1200–1100 BCPalette with yellow ochre
AW435F6264E13.29.2 (5261)c. 1180 BCPalette with red ochre, calcite
AW440F6493E13.14.1 (5361)c. 1190 BCPalette yellow ochre
AW445F6446E13.31.3 (5339)c. 1200 BCPalette with gypsum
Table
Table 2. Results of gum analysis of paint samples from Amara West and Sai, the samples taken from trees on Ernetta Island, and examples of gum analysis from the literature for comparison. Acacia is also referred to as gum Arabic; Acacia arabica is a synonym for Acacia nilotica [27].
Table 2. Results of gum analysis of paint samples from Amara West and Sai, the samples taken from trees on Ernetta Island, and examples of gum analysis from the literature for comparison. Acacia is also referred to as gum Arabic; Acacia arabica is a synonym for Acacia nilotica [27].
ArabinoseRhamnoseGalactoseGlucoseMannoseXyloseFucoseGlucuronic AcidGalacturonic Acid
Samples from Sai
Sai130++++++++++++ +
Sai133+++++++++++ +
Sai150 +++ +++ ++
Sai153++++++++++++++
Sai154+++++++++++++
Sai155 +++++ +
Samples from Amara West
AW121 ++ + +
AW129+ +++ (+)
AW132b+ + + (+)
AW139+ + +
AW256++++++++ +
AW323 + +
AW435+++++++++
AW445+++++++++++
Samples from Ernetta Island
T1–3, T7–8 (amber)+++++ ++
T4–6 (black)+ +
Modern samples from the British Museum Reference Collection
Acacia arabica 1++++++ ++
Gum tragacanth 2++++ +++++
Prunus gum 3++++++++ ++
Examples from literature (modern)
Acacia arabica a+++++ ++
Acacia arabica b+++ +
Acacia nilotica c++(+)++ +
Acacia nilotica d+++++ +
Acacia Senegal e+++++ +
Gum tragacanth f++(+)++ +++ ++
Gum tragacanth b+ +++++ +
Apricot gum g++ ++ + +
Cherry gum a++ + ++ +
1 REFC 66,909: commercial acacia powder; 2 REFC 66,931; 3 REFC 138-Y: collected from UK orchard tree. a [28]: b [29]; c [30]; d [20] (Sudanese sample); e [31]; f [32]; g [33]. ++ high proportion; + lower proportion; (+) traces.
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Fulcher, K.; Spencer, N.; Budka, J.; Stacey, R.J. Polysaccharide Paint Binding Media at Two Pharaonic Settlements in Nubia. Heritage 2022, 5, 2028-2040. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5030106

AMA Style

Fulcher K, Spencer N, Budka J, Stacey RJ. Polysaccharide Paint Binding Media at Two Pharaonic Settlements in Nubia. Heritage. 2022; 5(3):2028-2040. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5030106

Chicago/Turabian Style

Fulcher, Kate, Neal Spencer, Julia Budka, and Rebecca J. Stacey. 2022. "Polysaccharide Paint Binding Media at Two Pharaonic Settlements in Nubia" Heritage 5, no. 3: 2028-2040. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5030106

APA Style

Fulcher, K., Spencer, N., Budka, J., & Stacey, R. J. (2022). Polysaccharide Paint Binding Media at Two Pharaonic Settlements in Nubia. Heritage, 5(3), 2028-2040. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5030106

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop