Structural Analysis of Materials and Techniques of Plinth Ornaments of Safavid Era: A Case Study of Shah Abbas II Mausoleum in Qom

The tomb of Shah Abbas II beside the holy shrine of Hazrat Masumeh (PBUH), in terms of architecture
and ornaments, is one of the characteristics of the Safavid period buildings. The stone plinths are
decorated with colorful flowers. The use of stones in Iranian architecture, both in Islamic era and
before it was considered alot. Decorations and paintings on the stone can be seen alongside a variety
of Safavid architectural decorations, such as oil painting and gilding.The purpose of this research is
to identify and analyze materials and techniques for the implementation of these designs on the rock
during the Safavid period and compare the results with the monuments of this period.In this research,
after introducing the studied decorations, the identification of pigments and fasteners has been
investigated, by using devices. The FTIR brand Bruker, the Germany-made model of Tensor 27, with
a wavelength range of 1 cm-1 to 400 cm-1 4000, was used to identify organic matter, adhesives and
clips. The Bruker XRF device, the Germany-made model of S1traser, was used to identify the elements
in the specimens.For further identification of some pigments, an optical microscope (OM) equipped
with polarizing light was used. White color: Bleaching Lead, Red: Cranberry Plus Ocher, Blue: Azure,
Green: Copper Rustin in addition to Malachite and Gold: Gold Metals are identified pigments that are
typical colors of the Safavid wall paintings. Gold metal is used in gold-paste style. The identification
of the ocher pigment was performed using a polarized light microscope. The presence of egg yolk
in the examined specimens increases the likelihood of the painting technique being tempered. In all
samples, there was found a trace of linseed oil that could be used as the final coating of decorations.
Comparison of the results of this study with the results of some other outstanding mural paintings of
the Safavid, shows the complete match of the pigments of these buildings.