In the 19th century, professional conservators started using the science and scientific attitude in the process of conservation studies. With the improvement of scientific methods, conservators gained the ability to use analytical approaches to solve the problems. Emphasizing on using chemical and physical studies had made a new field in conservation of arts. In this paper, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) is used to identify the pigments and the base of mural paintings with the goal of acknowledging the role of science and the intention of artist in application specific colors and methods at creating the royal Qajar mural paintings. This analysis is necessary to improve the level of decision making for conservation and restoration. The results of this study shows the Qajar artist chose the colors with full cognizance and the only differentiation is observed in blue pigments, where Lapis Lazuli was used in the “Saf-e-Salam-e-Fathalishah”. Lazuli blue is known for being resistant to weathering and for its fluorescent feature, and transmits the intention of the artist to the viewer in the best way. The approach of this research in data gathering through studying the available sources about Qajar mural painting with the consideration of artist intention along with the quantitative and qualitative analysis of the samples from three Qajar royal wall paintings from Golestan palace. These wall paintings now assembled in Negarestan palace, discussing the artist intention in choosing/applying materials and methods in creating mural paintings of Qajar era. Artist’s intention can have different levels of complexity, but conservators identify a familiar problem as the main one. Natural causes and physical conditions change the features of the artwork. Time, dust, or undesirable incidents always create a condition in which the art work is dimmed, changed or damaged. In other words, the colors are dried, cracked or flaked, the canvas is swollen and panels are detached. Moreover, the organic pigments become pale or colorless and metal pigments can be oxidized and turn black and brown from green and red. Neither the artist nor the conservator have access to stable ingredients. Conservators know how hard controlling or forecasting such problems can be and these factors add on to the complexity of the job. Except the goal, choices of the artist in materials will be affected by physical damage, quality loss and deterioration. Artworks cannot be kept in the final form which the artist created, although Qajar mural paintings have their own visual features, they also have their own distinctive ingredients and method of painting. One of these are the unique method of each artist. Laboratory researches showed that the only difference between the two mural paintings were the blue pigments. This research aims to answer how choosing the ingredient and method with the intention of the artist in the time of creating the artwork can help us to understand the art better. So, the purpose of this research is to study the royal Qajar mural paintings based on the chemical analysis to understand the intention of the artist in creation of these two artworks.

During the Islamic periods, the containers characterized by narrow or pear-shaped glass-body with a round bottom and long drainage pipe or tube were known, but rarely have been studied. There are three different hypotheses for applications of such containers. A cupping glass(Shakh-i hajamat) for phlebotomize in medicine, “Alembic” for chemical or alchemical experiments, or containers for pharmaceuticals and the production of cosmetics and perfumes which has been used for making the materials and transfer them through tubes, or perfume containers as particular container for cosmetics. It seems that if the container is placed from the opening on a surface, then its pipe is wholly bent in the opposite direction of the body. Where it is taller than the body, it could be used or applied as a cupping glass for phlebotomize in medicine or as a container for materials in medications, cosmetics and perfumery. If the pipe is entirely straight and perpendicular to the body or slightly curved, it could be used for all three applications mentioned above. In Islamic periods, the Arabic word of KIMIA (elixir) was synonymous with alchemy and chemistry in the viewpoint of technology and therefore, includes a variety of processes, including distillation of herbs and medicinal oils, perfumes and rosewater, and fragrant oils and other substances. Some of tools and equipment used for alchemy have been made of glass like the distiller. There have been many pacts for using these kinds of container in the Islamic literature written by Abu Musa Jaber Ibn Hayyan (Around 721 to 815 AD) and Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariyyā al-Rāzī (865 to 923 AD) who were known as the greatest scientists in the history of chemistry and chemical technology in the Islamic world. Their scientific and practical works have had a great impact on the scientists and researchers of the next generations, both Muslims and Europeans. Many methods, such as distillation and all kinds of basic related tools, such as Cucurbit (qar’a) and Alembic (al-inbīq) have been attributed to Jabir Ibn Hayyan. However, al-Razi in his book, Kitab al-asrar or Secret of alchemy, among the tools and devices for chemical processing (Tadbir) and distillation (Taqtir), has mentioned to them and studied the Cucurbit and Alembic with an outlet pipe, a distilled liquid container, recipient (qabila) and a blind Alembic (without an outlet pipe) (anbiq al'aemaa). As a matter of fact, the chemical composition of materials inside such containers discovered in Iran has not yet been studied, while it is a critical issue for the characterization and application of these containers. For the first time, one of such containers with a long and straight tube which was kept in the Glassware and Ceramic Museum of Iran has been analyzed and processed by the Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) technique. The analysis of chemical compounds detected in this container revealed that it had been exposed to essential, and natural oils for a long time. The GC-MS analysis of the washing solution led to the identification of 22 substances, where the main identified compounds were: thymol, carvacrol, p-cymene and γ-terpinene, fatty acids (palmitic acid and stearic acid), and a significant number of substances of the waxes groups. Thymol and carvacrol are the main substances of natural essential oils of Thyme, Savory and Marjoram. Also, the findings of this research have proved the contact of the above-mentioned container with natural essential oils, especially thyme. The ingredients found in this container could be recognizable in many distillates. So, it can suggest that the container has been used as an Alembic for distillation and extraction of vegetable and volatile oil substances in pharmacy, cosmetics and perfumes. More analysis in the future on the contaminated materials within such containers can give more clues and advantages for clarifying the more possible application of these containers.