Provenance study of the official architectural glazed tiles of Wudang Mountain in the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644 CE): Insights from Wulong Palace and Laojun Hall

Wudang Mountain ancient building complexes were royal Taoist buildings during the Ming Dynasty, comprising over 20,000 structures. The question of whether the architectural glazed tiles in huge demand were transported from other regions or produced locally reflects the organizational system of glazed tile production and the supply of raw materials in royal architectural engineering. Glazed tiles from Wulong Palace and Laojun Hall were analyzed, using WDXRF, HR-ICP-MS, and TIMS to characterize both the major, minor, and trace elements of the body and the lead isotope ratios of the glaze layer. The results exclude the possibility that the studied glazed tile samples originate from the Pangwan Kiln (an official glazed tile supplier for Wudang Mountain). Furthermore, when compared with glazed tile data from the Ming Dynasty imperial capitals and official kilns, it is clear that these reference samples do not share the same origin as those of Wulong Palace and Laojun Hall. Lead isotope analysis suggests that the lead used for Wulong Palace and Laojun Hall likely originated from western Hubei. This exploratory study contributes to revealing the organizational system and lead supply network of imperial engineering in the Ming Dynasty while providing a reference for the future restoration of Ming architecture.