Scientific methods

[Gavin Nugent]

I am appealing to those of a technical background or insight here.

I am interested to know what, if any, scientific method/s might be available to see and photograph rubbed gold residue on blades to obtain a full image of worn cartouches?

I ask as I have what I believe to be a very important blade that with the visible gold can only offer a partial translation of two cartouches and nothing of the third.

Any direction to methods, persons or institutions that can offer help would be greatly appreciated and I am sure others here who have similar questions and could surely benefit.

thanks

Gav

[Rich]

Don't know how deep the cartouches are, but with Japanese swords it's common to sprinkle with talc or baby powder, lightly brush or shake it off to enhance the signature. Might (?) work for your blades???

Also maybe a pencil or charcoal rubbing on paper might be more readable than the original on the blade. Just a thought.

Rich S

[Gavin Nugent]

Hi Rich,

Thanks for coming in on this.

These cartouches are applied gold in the Koftgari manner and worn in places but the incised lines are still present so I am remaining hopeful that there is a method/s that highlights any residue in the grooves to offer a better outline of the writings not seen to the naked eye.
I am going to the stamp shop for a black light to see if this suggested methods works too

Gav

[Spunjer]

Hi gav,
Photoshop can do wonders. Sometimes i would see stuff after taking pics on higher megapixels, then enhancing the picture further...

[Gavin Nugent]

Originally Posted by Spunjer

Hi gav,
Photoshop can do wonders. Sometimes i would see stuff after taking pics on higher megapixels, then enhancing the picture further...

Thanks Ron. I have done this with good results thus far as the residue showed as a nice blue colour on the steel, I was then able to print the image and line draw on the print out from what I viewed on the screen...I will continue to try this method but I fear there are just a few key sections on the edges of the cartouches that I just can't get clear enough....maybe a lot easier if I had an A3 printer rather than the A4 one that everyone seems to have at home.

Gav

[mrwizard]

It is a bit tedious but examining the surface with a simple microscope might help on the unreadable sections. I'm sure if you ask politely, someone from the university of Queensland will help you with access to the right equipment. I would start asking a mineralogy or materials science department.

Best Regards,
Thilo