Techniques of Wallpaper (Biao Hu) in the Palace Museum: A Case Study of the Lodge of Bamboo Fragrance (Zhuxiang Guan)

keywords:the Palace Museum  wallpaper  wooden structure

Abstract:Biao Hu was one of the eight famous traditional crafts in the late Qing dynasty. This skill involved decorating the interiors of ancient buildings such as ceilings, walls, and windows and creating burial objects. It was primarily used for wooden buildings in northern China during the early Qing dynasty. For example, there is white-patterned wallpaper in the Forbidden City utilizing both traditional and nontraditional patterns. Moreover, there was wallpaper with a special pattern in the Lodge of the Bamboo Fragrance (Zhuxiang Guan). Its structure and composition were studied via morphological observations and spectral analyses, the pigments and dyes were analyzed by Raman spectroscopy and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrum (UPLC-MS). Traditional technology and exchanges between China and the West were discussed by the study of patterned wallpapers in other buildings of the Forbidden City.