fuller's earth

Pointing to a section of the north wall overlooking the river, Sharma said that workers had recently applied the clay mixture known as fuller's earth, traditionally used as a bleaching agent to absorb oil and grease from sheep's wool.

Scaling the walls on scaffolds, workers plaster the surfaces with Fuller's earth, a mud paste that absorbs dirt, grease, and animal excrement.

The furor seems to have passed — the Taj is now receiving a more friendly mud-slinging, namely a cleaning with a soil-based poultice named Fuller’s earth.

To remove discoloration, workers suspended on scaffolding are caking Fuller’s earth — a mud paste that absorbs dirt, grease and animal excrement, and that is commonly used to treat skin impurities — on the entire monument.

It was made of fuller’s earth, which is useful for its positively charged crystal structure.