Many works of art are complex systems consisting of a core finished by the overlapping of several painted layers. In this work, we apply an innovative method based on grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) with synchrotron radiation (SR) to investigate polychrome stratigraphies with a completely non-destructive approach. The SR-GIXRD measurements provided direct and unambiguous compositional and stratigraphic information of the crystalline species lying in different layers. The investigations performed on a small fragment sampled from a painted terracotta statue allowed identifying pigments, fillers, aggregates of the matrix and newly formed decay salts in micrometric-thin paint layers. Furthermore, the great potentiality of this study is the feasibility of depth profile investigations on multi-layered painted samples from Cultural Heritage objects without resorting to cross sectional analyses. Currently, the method is non-destructive but it can be potentially non-invasive in situations where small moveable artworks can be placed into the measurement chamber of the SR-XRD beamlines. The overall study paves the way to a new scenario of artwork investigations, shading light on new unexplored approaches for non-destructive studies of Cultural Heritage objects, their conservation history and their interaction with the environment.

What’s underneath? : A non-destructive depth profile of painted stratigraphies by synchrotron grazing incidence X-ray diffraction / E. Possenti, C. Colombo, C. Conti, L. Gigli, M. Merlini, J.R. Plaisier, M. Realini, G.D. Gatta. - In: ANALYST. - ISSN 0003-2654. - 142:18(2018 Sep), pp. 4290-4297.

What’s underneath? : A non-destructive depth profile of painted stratigraphies by synchrotron grazing incidence X-ray diffraction

E. Possenti
Primo
;
M. Merlini;G.D. Gatta
Ultimo
2018

Abstract

Many works of art are complex systems consisting of a core finished by the overlapping of several painted layers. In this work, we apply an innovative method based on grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) with synchrotron radiation (SR) to investigate polychrome stratigraphies with a completely non-destructive approach. The SR-GIXRD measurements provided direct and unambiguous compositional and stratigraphic information of the crystalline species lying in different layers. The investigations performed on a small fragment sampled from a painted terracotta statue allowed identifying pigments, fillers, aggregates of the matrix and newly formed decay salts in micrometric-thin paint layers. Furthermore, the great potentiality of this study is the feasibility of depth profile investigations on multi-layered painted samples from Cultural Heritage objects without resorting to cross sectional analyses. Currently, the method is non-destructive but it can be potentially non-invasive in situations where small moveable artworks can be placed into the measurement chamber of the SR-XRD beamlines. The overall study paves the way to a new scenario of artwork investigations, shading light on new unexplored approaches for non-destructive studies of Cultural Heritage objects, their conservation history and their interaction with the environment.
Offset raman-spectroscopy; mirrirs; layers
Settore GEO/09 - Georisorse Miner.Appl.Mineral.-Petrogr.per l'amb.e i Beni Cul
set-2018
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/585963
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