Non-destructive testing and evaluation on ancient chinese colored-clay sculptures

The aim of this study was to establish a set of criteria by analyzing the results obtained from non-destructive testing of the colored-clay sculptures in the Jinci Temple, Shanxi Province, China. The set of criteria were established by examining the surface fissure conditions, the total damaged and scaling areas of the sculptures. By analyzing the twenty four colored-clay sculptures, the results indicated that in Category D, 74~83% of the total areas of the sculptures had different degrees of damages, which included the colored-surface scaling areas. These indicated that the damages were relatively severe, and would jeopardize the ornamental value (attractiveness), durability and safety performance. Thus, restoration and preservation works need to be executed promptly.