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Heritage Science
Fig. 7 | Heritage Science

Fig. 7

From: Congregation leaving the Reformed Church in Nuenen by Vincent van Gogh: a combined multi-instrumental approach to analyse the painting’s stratigraphy in support of varnish removal

Fig. 7

a Localisation of cleaning test no. 9 (the yellow circle indicates the area analysed by portable FTIR); b, c photomicrographs (VIS raking light and UV-excited fluorescence) of this area after treatment (see Fig. 2b for the photomicrograph before varnish removal). White squares mark areas mapped with OCT, white rectangles exact location of OCT tomograms shown in panels f and g; d reflection FTIR spectra collected before (uncleaned) and after each step of the test in comparison with a reference spectrum of an alkyd resin (characteristic alkyd signals marked with arrows). Si: silicate component; P: protein; e FTIR spectra recorded in transflection mode from the swab extracts in comparison with a reference spectrum of an alkyd resin and that corresponding to the blank (extract of pure cotton in ethanol). Asterisks mark signals probably affected by those of the blank; f, g OCT tomograms collected before and after varnish removal, description of layers: (1) initial paint layer from 1884, (2) Van Gogh’s original varnish, (3) later varnish layer from the 1961 restoration treatment; h, i OCT topography maps collected before and after varnish removal; j OCT differential map showing amount of removed material

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