"Scientific Investigation of Copies, Fakes and Forgeries is a comprehensive guide to the technical and scientific study of the authenticity of a wide range of antiquities and artworks. It is the first book to provide a full survey of the subject of forgery from a scientific basis, examining a wide range of materials and techniques." "The demand for copies, fakes and forgeries is driven by rising prices in an international marketplace. The book examines the available new technologies and ever more sophisticated forging techniques, looking at production and distribution of fraudulent artworks. The subject is exemplified by numerous internationally based case studies, some turning out not to be as conclusive as is sometimes believed." "The book is aimed at those who need to understand the available approaches to and methods of scientific and technical authentication, be they curator, collector, conservator or scientist." --Book Jacket.

Describes the Chinese Bronze Age, including the development of the Chinese state, writing, religion and architecture.

Electrochemical corrosion and reduction / Marcel Pourbaix -- Corrosion product characterization / N.A. Nielsen -- Principles of gaseous reduction of corrosion products / C. Ernest Birchenall and Russell A. Meussner -- Some brief remarks on electrochemical reduction / Jerome Kruger -- Measures for preventing corrosion of metals / R.T. Foley -- A review of the history and practice of patination / Phoebe Dent Weil -- The production of artificial patination on copper / D.C. Hemming -- Beta iron oxide hydroxide formation in localized active corrosion of iron artifacts / F. Zucchi, G. Morigi, and V. Bertolasi -- The current status of the treatment of corroded metal artifacts / R.M. Organ -- Some constructive corrodings / Cyril Stanley Smith -- Conservation of rusty iron objects by hydrogen reduction / L. Barkman -- Restoration of large gilded statues using various electrochemical and metallurgical techniques / Fielding Ogburn, Elio Passaglia, Harry C. Burnett, Jerome Kruger, and Marion L. Picklesimer -- Problems of retrieval and retention of artifacts in field excavations / W. Trousdale.

The sixteen essays in this volume reflect a wide range of research concerning methods for metals conservation, particularly in respect to ancient and historic objects. The variety of issues discussed includes considerations in the cleaning of ancient bronze vessels; the processes involved in bronze casting, finishing, patination, and corrosion; studies of manufacturing techniques of gold objects in ancient African and medieval European metalworking; techniques of mercury gilding in the 18th century; an investigation of patina in the classification of bronze surfaces from land and lake environments; an examination of bronze objects from the Benin Kingdom, Nigeria; the history of restoration of the Marcus Aurelius monument in Rome; the corrosion of iron in architecture; and applications of radiographic tomography to the study of metal objects.

Himalayan Bronzes focuses on a complete study of 340 medieval-period copper alloy sculptures from the Himalayan regions of Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Nepal, and Tibet. For more than 1,500 years, artists in isolated valleys in and adjacent to the mountains of the Himalayas have created magnificent copper-based statues representing deities and spiritual leaders of the Hindu, Buddhist and Bon-Po religions. Author Chandra L. Reedy's multidisciplinary approach to the study of these statues integrates methods and techniques from art history, art conservation, geology, chemistry, statistics, archaeology, and ethnography to answer art historical and anthropological questions. Her guiding premise is that gathering and combining several types of information will result in more and better answers than any one type alone.

Historical Perspectives on East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine brings together over fifty papers by leading contemporary historians from more than a dozen nations. It is the third in a series of books growing out of the tri-annual International Conference on the History of Science in East Asia, the largest and most prestigious gathering of scholars in the field. The current volume broadens the field's traditional focus on China to include path-breaking work on Vietnam, Korea, Japan, the Philippines, and even the transmission of Asian science and technology to Europe and the United States. Topics covered include: traditional Chinese, Vietnamese, and Filipino medicines; Chinese astronomy; Japanese earthquakes; science and technology policy; architecture; the digital revolution; and much else.