This website is devoted to presenting images and identification data for those interested in Oriental papermaking fibres. All samples have been collected from Japan, prepared and stained with Herzberg and Graff 'C' stains according to ASTM 1030-95, and photographed with the Olympus BX51, with photographs taken with an Olympus DP70 connected to a DELL Optiplex GX280, at the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation at The University of Melbourne. This website was prepared by Travis Taylor as part of a paper conservation internship at the CCMC, in 2006/7and without the support of Louise Wilson, Jude Fraser, Petronella Nel, Nicole Jones, Tomomi Nakazawa and the CCMC it would not be possible.
This website was created to fill the void in accurate colour images of papermaking fibres available to conservators or other professionals. While the ASTM 1030-95 Standard[1] provides the guidelines for identification using staining, there are no images reproduced in colour available, only a written guide of the expected colours. While Ilvessalo-Pfafflis'[14] book, Colling's article[9] and others, provides a wealth of information, the limitations of publishing images in black and white do limit its use when identification is done with staining. As such further samples, corrections or additional data are more than welcomed in what I hope will be a growing website.
This website has been divided into a number of sections to enable efficient identification. These links are present on all pages in the top left corner:
Introduction. This links back to this page.
Summary Table. I have summarized as much information regarding the samples as possible into a table format on this page. The table includes Common Name, Scientific Name, Japanese Name written in Romaji, Japanese name written in Japanese, Fibre Length, Fibre Width, Fibre Ends, Cross Marking, Herzberg and Graff 'C' staining colours.
Fibre Name. If the name of the fibre is already known, or suspected, then navigating through the Fibre Name page would be best. This page also contains the names of the fibres in Japanese. Any names that use different characters other than Japanese are not present. The scientific name of the samples is present on this page.
Fibre Width. If an unknown samples' width is known, then checking samples that match through the Fibre Width page would be best. I have tried to provide a range in which the samples appeared. Fibre Length is not used since overbeating of the fibres often results in the fibres becoming broken into smaller lengths than intact fibres.
Staining Colour. If the unknown fibre sample has been stained, refering to the list of colours that my own samples stained may help. It is important to note that the colours listed are only those that I encountered when I stained my particular samples, and it is not guaranteed that your samples will stain exactly the same. If you have doubts, it is important to still follow the Standard[1] provided by the ASTM. Samples were stained with Herzberg and Graff'C' stain prepared according to the ASTM Standard[1].
Bibliography. This provides a list of texts that may be useful for those interested in fibre identification, and that I used during this project. References to the Bibliography use a numbered system e.g.[1] refers to the ASTM Standard.
Contact. If you have a sample you would like added to the website, or have found an error, please do not hesitate to contact me. Either through emailing me directly, or through the CCMC.
All images can be expanded to a larger image if need be.
This website is copyrighted to Travis Taylor 2007, and is intended for educational and research purposes.
For information about this page, contact: Travis Taylor
Contact email address: travtora@gmail.com
Centre homepage: www.culturalconservation.unimelb.edu.au
Page last modified:
This page, its contents and style, are the responsibility of the author and do not represent the views, policies or opinions of The University of Melbourne.