Comprehensive Analysis of Gold Threads as Decor Elements in Medieval Textiles Using Electron and Ion Beams, and Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Analysis

Abstract

In the present study, we apply and further develop an interdisciplinary approach to investigate textile remnants of a 17th-century shirt discovered during archaeological excavations by the Institute of Archaeology, Russian Academy of Sciences (conducted in February 2021 under the direction of N.I. Savel’ev) in the former Goncharnaya Sloboda (Pottery Settlement area) of Moscow. When examining a fragment of the shirt with preserved decorative elements, we use a set of complementary analytical methods. The conducted research reveals that the shirt was sewn from linen fabric and bordered with woven silk ribbons. The spun golden threads used for embroidering decorative elements on the shirt are produced by twisting a core thread made of silver (with copper and gold additives) ribbon approximately 340 μm wide and 14 μm thick, with a layer of gold 1–1.5 μm thick applied to its surface. A silk thread is used as the core. A reconstruction of the method for manufacturing the metallic braided ribbon is carried out. High-resolution optical images of the spun gold threads are obtained, revealing their structure.