The Hispanic Society Museum & Library (HSML) holds a collection of nine viceregal barniz de Pasto objects, made by Indigenous artisans in the 17th and 18th centuries. Designed to imitate Asian lacquers and intended for European aesthetic tastes, barniz de Pasto is an example of Indigenous technique and knowledge that has survived to the present day. An in-depth analysis of five of these barniz de Pasto objects, dated to the first half and last quarter of the 17th century based on their iconography, was carried out through a combination of non-invasive and micro-invasive techniques, including portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy to investigate the possible presence of inorganic pigments, and fiber-optics reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) and reflectance imaging spectroscopy (RIS) to provide molecular information on colorants and their distributions across the objects. Dyes and pigments were also identified using Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). The nature of the resin was determined by FTIR and pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), while the decoration stratigraphy and composition were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). This paper confirms the use of mopa mopa, the resin used in the barniz de Pasto technique, in two objects not previously analyzed, and identifies indigo, insect-based red, calomel, lead white, and an unknown flavonol-based yellow dye, and challenges the use of calomel as a temporal marker for these works. Taken together, these results expand our understanding of the material use and explorations undertaken by artists during this time period to create such elaborate and enduring objects.

The Treaty of Kanagawa, signed by Japan and the United States in 1854, ended Edo Japan’s isolation and opened the country to foreign advancements in technology, science, and industry. This time of change, marked by the fall of the Shogunate and the transition to the Meiji period in 1868, coincided with the 1856 discovery of the first synthetic dye, mauveine, by William Perkin. For the exhibition Kimono Style: The John C. Weber Collection, ten kimono from the late Edo (1603–1868), Meiji (1868–1912), and Shōwa (1926–1945) periods were selected to investigate the introduction of synthetic dyes in Japan’s textile industry. Analysis with liquid chromatography-diode array detector-quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (LC-DAD-qToF-MS) showed only natural dyes in pre-1854 kimono. Synthetic dyes appeared at the end of Edo, immediately after they became available, gradually increased during Meiji, and completely replaced natural dyes around the 1920s in the Shōwa period, as domestic production began in Japan.

Rare surviving examples of late eighteenth-century French dress are exceptional. The robe à la circassienne examined in this study is preserved in an unusually intact state, likely due to its small size, which limited its suitability for later wearers, and the rapid shift in fashion that further reduced incentives for alteration or reuse. Discrepancies between the garment’s present coloration, early cataloguing records, and a non-matching reproduction petticoat prompted an investigation into its original appearance. The dress features a ground fabric woven with a pink warp and white weft, accented by vertical multicolored stripes. Organic colorants were analyzed using liquid chromatography–diode array detection–quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-DAD-qToF-MS), and elemental composition was determined by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy. The dark pink stripe contained safflower (Carthamus tinctorius), a highly fugitive dye. The blue and green stripes showed mixtures of weld (Reseda luteola), an indigoid dye (Indigofera spp.), and Brazilwood (Caesalpinia or Haematoxylum spp.), consistent with historical recipes for bronze and wood shades. Brazilwood and an orchil dye detected in the ground fabric suggest an original reddish-purple hue rather than the pale pink visible today. Arsenic found in the pink fabric and trim provides the first material evidence for the French orchil-dyeing process known as Parelle d’Auvergne. By integrating analytical results with historical dye recipes and curatorial records, this study proposes a hypothesis for the garment’s original appearance and demonstrates how combined scientific and historical approaches deepen our understanding of fragile textile artifacts and the factors that shaped their creation and survival.