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February 7, 2008
Earliest known oil paintings . . . 7th C
This pushes a horizon back a bit - researchers have found oil and resin-based techniques in caves at Bamian dated to the 7th C. The National Geographic Online story has a reasonably good picture, though of course you can't tell it from fresco that way. Here's a photo gallery - two extra photos of paintings.
The UN World Heritage-listed Bamian Valley, which lies 145 miles (240 kilometers) northwest of Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, is best known as the home of two giant Buddha statues destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.But murals depicting ornate swirling patterns, Buddhist imagery, and mythological animals also adorn 50 of up to a thousand caves in the region. The decorations date to between the 5th and 9th centuries A.D.
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Oil is used in paint to help fix the dye and help it adhere to a surface. Oil also changes a paint's drying time and viscosity.
More complex than the standard mineral pigments and animal glue previously favored, the technique hints of Indian, West Chinese, and Mediterranean influences, Taniguchi said.
Posted by CrankyProfessor at February 7, 2008 7:33 AM