Investigations of the historic textiles excavated from Ancient Ainos (Enez – Turkey) by multiple analytical techniques

• EDXRF, FT-IR and morphological analyses of historic textiles.
• Textiles were made from partially degummed Bombyx mori silk.
• SEM micrographs show that textile fibers were highly degraded.

Some metal ornamented textile specimens and a textile button, excavated from Ancient Ainos (Enez – Turkey), have been investigated using FTIR and EDXRF spectrometry, for the purpose of material identification. FTIR spectral results indicated that textiles were made from partially degummed Bombyx mori silk. The IR spectral investigation of the textile button revealed that some cellulose fillings were used inside the button. The EDXRF analysis of the metal ornaments showed that they were silver plated copper. Surface morphology of the textiles and the metal ornaments were investigated by SEM images. It was shown that textile fibers were highly degraded.