Articles

Fading into the background: the dark space surrounding Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring

The background of Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring (c. 1665, Mauritshuis) has, until recently, been interpreted as a flat dark space. The painting was examined in 2018 as part of the research project The Girl ...

Authors: Abbie Vandivere, Annelies van Loon, Tom Callewaert, Ralph Haswell, Art Ness Proaño Gaibor, Henk van Keulen, Emilien Leonhardt and Joris Dik

Study on a silver box unearthed from the Tang Dynasty (AD 618–907) tomb at Xiaolizhuang Site, Henan Province, China

Over the years, numerous gold and silver artifacts were excavated from tombs of the Tang Dynasty which gave evidence of the sophisticated metalworking techniques at that time. However, very few of them were st...

Authors: Zhihui Yao and Yuxuan Gong

Infrared chemical mapping of degradation products in cross-sections from paintings and painted objects

Paintings and painted objects are quite susceptible to degradation, as paint layers are usually composed of complex mixtures of materials that can participate in chemical degradation processes. The identificat...

Authors: Eric J. Henderson, Kate Helwig, Stuart Read and Scott M. Rosendahl

Study on firing temperature of the Song Dynasty (960–1279AD) greenish-white porcelain in Guangxi, China by thermal expansion method

The original firing temperatures of porcelain pieces unearthed from Tengxian Zhonghe kiln, Rongxian Chengguan kiln, Beiliu Lingdong kiln and Guiping Xishan kiln from the Song Dynasty (960–1279AD) of Guangxi we...

Authors: Yongdong Tong and Changming Wang

Imaging secondary reaction products at the surface of Vermeer’s Girl with the Pearl Earring by means of macroscopic X-ray powder diffraction scanning

The use of non-invasive macroscopic imaging techniques is becoming more prevalent in the field of cultural heritage, especially to avoid invasive procedures that damage valuable artworks. For this purpose, an ...

Authors: Steven De Meyer, Frederik Vanmeert, Rani Vertongen, Annelies van Loon, Victor Gonzalez, Geert van der Snickt, Abbie Vandivere and Koen Janssens

The effect of halloysite nanotubes dispersions on vegetable-tanned leather thermal stability

Leather artefacts in historical collections and old leather bookbindings in archives and libraries frequently show a variety of visible changes which alter their appearance and ability to be used, such as powd...

Authors: Elena Badea, Cristina Carşote, Emanuel Hadîmbu, Claudiu Șendrea and Maria-Cristina Lupaș

Revealing the painterly technique beneath the surface of Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring using macro- and microscale imaging

The initial steps that Johannes Vermeer took to create Girl with a Pearl Earring (c. 1665) are, partially or completely, hidden beneath the painted surface. Vermeer’s painting technique involved applying underlay...

Authors: Abbie Vandivere, Annelies van Loon, Kathryn A. Dooley, Ralph Haswell, Robert G. Erdmann, Emilien Leonhardt and John K. Delaney

From ‘Vermeer Illuminated’ to ‘The Girl in the Spotlight’: approaches and methodologies for the scientific (re-)examination of Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring

Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer (c. 1665) is the most beloved painting in the collection of the Mauritshuis in The Hague, The Netherlands. The Girl was last examined during a 1994 restoration treatm...

Authors: Abbie Vandivere, Jørgen Wadum, Klaas Jan van den Berg and Annelies van Loon

Correction to: Visualizing and measuring gold leaf in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century Italian gold ground paintings using scanning macro X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy: a new tool for advancing art historical research

After the publication of the original article [1], the authors identified two errors in Table 1.

Authors: Douglas MacLennan, Laura Llewellyn, John K. Delaney, Kathryn A. Dooley, Catherine Schmidt Patterson, Yvonne Szafran and Karen Trentelman

The application of FTIR microspectroscopy in a non-invasive and non-destructive way to the study and conservation of mineralised excavated textiles

The potential of Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) microspectroscopy, to inform the study and conservation of mineralised excavated textiles is discussed, highlighted by two case studies of 5th c. BCE finds. I...

Authors: Christina Margariti

Analytical characterization of 5,5′-dibromoindigo and its first discovery in a museum textile

The exploitation of natural sources and later synthetic molecules to generate blue to purple coloration in textiles has a long history in the dyer’s craft. Natural indigoids such as indigo, woad, and Tyrian or...

Authors: Gregory Dale Smith, Victor J. Chen, Amanda Holden, Melinda H. Keefe and Shannon G. Lieb

Analyzing ancient Chinese handmade Lajian paper exhibiting an orange-red color

The ancient technique employed to produce Lajian paper—a very famous Chinese traditional handmade paper—has been lost. However, widespread restoration of the traditional skills used in the paper’s production is e...

Authors: Yanbing Luo, Jiali Chen, Cheng Yang and Yifan Huang

Manuscripts in the Making: Art and Science

Authors: Paola Ricciardi

Underground transfer of carbonised organic residues to lithics during preliminary fire experiments: implications for archaeology

Using fire experiments, we investigate claims that black organic residues on lithics found in Stone Age sites are markers for heat treatment of rocks in the embers of aboveground wood fires. We buried sedges o...

Authors: Lyn Wadley, Susan Luong, Christine Sievers and Linda Prinsloo

Opaque ancient K₂O–PbO–SiO₂ glass of the Southern Song Dynasty with fluorite dendrites and its fabrication

Here we first report a piece of K₂O–PbO–SiO₂ ancient glass opacified by fluorite dendrites with archaeological background. This piece of glass was excavated from Nanhai I shipwreck, a merchant ship once heading f...

Authors: Yihang Zhou, Yuewen Jin, Kai Wang, Jian Sun, Yong Cui and Dongbo Hu

Application of a non-invasive, non-destructive technique to quantify naphthalene emission rates from museum objects

For the last 30 years, the cultural heritage sector has undertaken research into pesticide residues in museum objects. However, quantitative studies of volatile residues remain scarce. This research presents a...

Authors: Fabiana Portoni, Josep Grau-Bové and Matija Strlič

Twentieth century Iranian carpets: investigation of red dye molecules and study of traditional madder dyeing techniques

Red is undoubtedly one of the principal colors in Iranian carpets. During the twentieth century, a golden era for Iranian carpet production and export industry, madder was still one of the primary constituents...

Authors: Zohreh Chahardoli, Ina Vanden Berghe and Rocco Mazzeo

Archaeometric characterization of Byzantine pottery from Păcuiul lui Soare

Archaeometric investigations using OM (optical microscopy) and micro-PIXE (particle induced X-ray emission) were performed on 45 ceramic shards unearthed in archaeological excavations at Păcuiul lui Soare (southe...

Authors: Roxana Bugoi, Cristina Talmaţchi, Constantin Haitǎ and Daniele Ceccato

Painting the Palace of Apries II: ancient pigments of the reliefs from the Palace of Apries, Lower Egypt

Fragments of painted limestone reliefs from the Palace of Apries in Upper Egypt excavated by Flinders Petrie in 1908–1910 have been investigated using visible-induced luminescence imaging, micro X-ray fluoresc...

Authors: Signe Buccarella Hedegaard, Thomas Delbey, Cecilie Brøns and Kaare Lund Rasmussen

Performance and working mechanism of tension–compression composite anchorage system for earthen heritage sites

Although the fully grouted tension anchorage system (T-anchorage system) has been widely used in the field of anchoring of earthen heritage sites, it has always suffered from the failure of the bolt–slurry int...

Authors: Donghua Wang, Kai Cui, Guopeng Wu, Fei Feng and Xiangpeng Yu

Jan Steen’s ground layers analysed with Principal Component Analysis

In-depth technical and art historical research into Jan Steen’s (ca. 1626–1679) oeuvre has been a focus at the Mauritshuis since 2012, as part of the Partners in Science collaboration with Shell. The aim of th...

Authors: Marya Albrecht, Onno de Noord, Sabrina Meloni, Annelies van Loon and Ralph Haswell

Nano calcium carbonate versus nano calcium hydroxide in alcohols as a deacidification medium for lignocellulosic paper

Deacidification is an established conservation treatment for the prolongation of the acidic paper stability. Several different deacidification systems are in use today, such as the dispersions of alkaline nano...

Authors: Jasna Malešič, Mariša Kadivec, Matjaž Kunaver, Tina Skalar and Irena Kralj Cigić

A controlled field experiment to investigate the deterioration of earthen heritage by wind and rain

Earthen heritage constitutes 10% of sites on the World Heritage List and many of these sites are experiencing extensive deterioration caused by environmental forces, such as wind and rain. This study used a we...

Authors: J. Richards, G. Zhao, H. Zhang and H. Viles

Analysing for 4,4′-diaminodiphenylmethane in heritage collections containing solid and medium density flexible linear polyester polyurethanes using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry

Polyurethane (PUR) shoe soles from collections held by the Alfred Gillett Trust, stored for up to 50 years, were analysed for the presence of 4,4′-diaminodiphenylmethane (4,4′-MDA)—a substance of very high con...

Authors: Robert Tillotson, Timothy E. Crumplin, Graham J. Jones, George Marshall and Joe Dawson

Micro differential scanning calorimetry and micro hot table method for quantifying deterioration of historical leather

The aim of this study was to advance the current understanding on the mechanism of deterioration of historical vegetable tanned leathers and establish new criteria for quantifying their deterioration using mic...

Authors: Cristina Carsote and Elena Badea

Microscopic observations of paper and parchment: the archaeology of small objects

The study of micro-objects, both inorganic and organic, which can be found associated to parchment or cellulose fibres of books and documents, or in the inks and the dirt, accumulated over the centuries betwee...

Authors: Marina Bicchieri, Paola Biocca, Piero Colaizzi and Flavia Pinzari

Whitish haze, soapy globules: micro-analysis of degraded burmese paintings on zinc supports

Two Burmese oil paintings on zinc supports depicting portraits of royal families, dated to the early 20th century by Saya Aye and Saya Mya, showed interesting corrosion, efflorescence and soapy globules for an...

Authors: Lynn Chua

Pigments and binding media of polychrome relics from the central hall of Longju temple in Sichuan, China

Longju temple, located in Guanghan County, Sichuan province of China, is a Buddhist temple with great cultural significance. It has preserved polychrome relics since 1466 of the Ming dynasty. The deterioration...

Authors: Erxin Chen, Bingjian Zhang, Fan Zhao and Chong Wang

Laser cleaning of paintings: in situ optimization of operative parameters through non-invasive assessment by optical coherence tomography (OCT), reflection FT-IR spectroscopy and laser induced fluorescence spectroscopy (LIF)

Nowadays the use of laser technology as a highly precise tool for the cleaning of paintings is gaining ground. The development of a non-invasive analytical protocol aimed at thorough assessment of the treated ...

Authors: Patrizia Moretti, Magdalena Iwanicka, Kristalia Melessanaki, Evdoxia Dimitroulaki, Olga Kokkinaki, Melissa Daugherty, Marcin Sylwestrzak, Paraskevi Pouli, Piotr Targowski, Klaas Jan van den Berg, Laura Cartechini and Costanza Miliani

Odilon Redon’s noir drawings: characterization of materials and methods using noninvasive imaging and spectroscopies

The artist Odilon Redon (1840–1916) was a French symbolist known for both the dark, surreal prints and drawings he created in the first half of his career, as well as the colorful pastel works that characteriz...

Authors: Nathan S. Daly, Michelle Sullivan, Lynn Lee, John K. Delaney and Karen Trentelman

Mapping diagenesis in archaeological human bones

We describe a procedure for ascertaining the extent of diagenesis in archaeological human skeletons through the distribution of Sr, Ba, Cu, Pb, Fe, and Mn in cross-sections of femoral cortical bone. Element ma...

Authors: Kaare Lund Rasmussen, George Milner, Lilian Skytte, Niels Lynnerup, Jørgen Lange Thomsen and Jesper Lier Boldsen

Effect of solvent on PARALOID^® B72 and B44 acrylic resins used as adhesives in conservation

Paraloid^® is one of the most frequently used acrylic polymers, employed mainly for its adhesive and consolidating properties in the conservation of a wide range of materials. Appreciated for its reversibility, me...

Authors: Armand Vinçotte, Emmie Beauvoit, Nicolas Boyard and Elodie Guilminot

Studies on wall painting materials and techniques at two historic buildings in Gyantse, Tibet

This paper presents a scientific examination of wall paintings at two nonmonastic sites in Gyantse, Tibet: Gazhi Lhakang, which is a family temple built in the mid-eighteenth century by local aristocrats, and ...

Authors: Xinhui Yang, Xinyan Ji, Yongkang Cao and Taoyi Yu

Restoration of an ancient temple mural by a local search algorithm of an adaptive sample block

Long-term influences in the external environment, including light, temperature and humidity, have caused varying degrees of damage to ancient Chinese murals. Allowing people to appreciate the original style of...

Authors: Jianfang Cao, Yanfei Li, Qi Zhang and Hongyan Cui

Drying response of lime-mortar joints in granite masonry after an intense rainfall and after repointing

When rain impacts a building façade, it is essential that once it has entered, it leaves by evaporation to help the building dry out. Accumulation of moisture can lead to internal dampness, mould and decay of ...

Authors: Lucie Fusade, Scott Allan Orr, Chris Wood, Meriel O’Dowd and Heather Viles

So you want to do biocodicology? A field guide to the biological analysis of parchment

Biocodicology, the study of the biological information stored in manuscripts, offers the possibility of interrogating manuscripts in novel ways. Exploring the biological data associated to parchment documents ...

Authors: Sarah Fiddyment, Matthew D. Teasdale, Jiří Vnouček, Élodie Lévêque, Annelise Binois and Matthew J. Collins

Characterization of the residues in Han Dynasty bronze lamps by pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

The fuel residues in two bronze lamps excavated from Haihunhou Tomb in the Han Dynasty, in Jiangxi Province, China, were studied in this paper. The techniques of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy...

Authors: Huarui Han, Shuya Wei, Jun Yang, Li Guan and Wenhuan Li

Recent progress in instrumental techniques for architectural heritage materials

Both conservation and intervention methods must be compatible with each other and appropriate for the original building materials. Therefore, the characterization of historic building materials is indispensabl...

Authors: Chen Zhao, Yiwen Zhang, Chong-Chen Wang, Miaole Hou and Aiqun Li

A new bio-based organogel for the removal of wax coating from indoor bronze surfaces

In this research, we propose an advanced system for the cleaning of wax-based coatings applied on indoor bronzes. To this aim we developed a new kind of eco-friendly gel based on PHB (poly-3-hydroxybutyrate) u...

Authors: Jia Yiming, Giorgia Sciutto, Silvia Prati, Emilio Catelli, Monica Galeotti, Simone Porcinai, Laura Mazzocchetti, Chiara Samorì, Paola Galletti, Loris Giorgini, Emilio Tagliavini and Rocco Mazzeo

A Raman micro-spectroscopy study of 77,000 to 71,000 year old ochre processing tools from Sibudu, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Many Middle Stone Age sites in South Africa yielded hundreds, even thousands, of ochre pieces sometimes showing use traces. Less attention has been paid to the tools used for their processing. Here, seven tool...

Authors: Marine Wojcieszak and Lyn Wadley

An archaeometric approach to the majolica pottery from alcazar of Nájera archaeological site

The city of Nájera, located in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, hosts an alcazar of Arab origin, which became the residence of the king of Pamplona-Nájera and later of the duke and duchess of Nájera. From t...

Authors: Estefania Calparsoro, Uxue Sanchez-Garmendia, Gorka Arana, Maite Maguregui and Javier G. Iñañez

Solvent-mediated extraction of fatty acids in bilayer oil paint models: a comparative analysis of solvent application methods

The impact of solvent exposure on oil paintings and the differences between solvent application methods are longstanding topics in cleaning studies. Solvent exposure is ideally kept to a minimum, because solve...

Authors: Lambert Baij, Alina Astefanei, Joen Hermans, Francine Brinkhuis, Heleen Groenewegen, Louise Chassouant, Sofia Johansson, Garry Corthals, Caroline Tokarski, Piet Iedema and Katrien Keune

Preliminary results from a legacy indicator tool for measuring climate change related impacts on built heritage

Gradual changes in weathering rates and mechanisms are the barely visible impacts of climate change on cultural heritage. Long-term monitoring of built and archaeological heritage is therefore necessary to asc...

Authors: Cathy Daly

Multi-modal tomography to assess dechlorination treatments of iron-based archaeological artifacts

Chloride ions are an important actor in the corrosion of iron-based archaeological artifact. To stop this degradation, excavated objects are subjected to dechlorination treatment. However, there is no guarante...

Authors: Mathieu Jacot-Guillarmod, Katharina Schmidt-Ott, David Mannes, Anders Kaestner, Eberhard Lehmann and Claire Gervais

The behaviour of as-applied and artificially weathered silica–epoxy consolidants on a typical Mediterranean porous limestone: a comparison with TEOS

A water based epoxy–silica consolidant and variants of the same consolidant containing silica nanoparticles (NP) were applied to Globigerina Limestone (GL) blocks by brushing and full immersion techniques. The...

Authors: Sophie M. Briffa and Daniel A. Vella

Model study of the leather degradation by oxidation and hydrolysis

Many objects of culture heritage, comprised of leather, need to receive the right treatment to be restored and to elongate their lifespan. Determination of the degradation degree and even better the type of th...

Authors: Gabriela Vyskočilová, Matthäa Ebersbach, Radka Kopecká, Lubomír Prokeš and Jiří Příhoda

Visualizing and measuring gold leaf in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century Italian gold ground paintings using scanning macro X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy: a new tool for advancing art historical research

The size, shape, and application techniques of gold leaf in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century gold ground panel paintings attributed to artists working in Florence, Siena, and Fabriano was directly visualized ...

Authors: Douglas MacLennan, Laura Llewellyn, John K. Delaney, Kathryn A. Dooley, Catherine Schmidt Patterson, Yvonne Szafran and Karen Trentelman

The evolution of the materials used in the yun technique for the decoration of Burmese objects: lacquer, binding media and pigments

A series of Burmese lacquered objects decorated with the yun (incised) technique and belonging to the British Museum’s collection was analysed with the aim to investigate the decorative materials—lacquer, binding...

Authors: Diego Tamburini, Verena Kotonski, Anna Lluveras-Tenorio, Maria Perla Colombini and Alexandra Green

Kandinsky’s fragile art: a multidisciplinary investigation of four early reverse glass paintings (1911–1914) by Wassily Kandinsky

This work highlights the rediscovery of the technique of reverse glass painting by the artists of the “Blaue Reiter” collective in the early 20th-century and focusses particularly on the role of Wassily Kandin...

Authors: Simon Steger, Diana Oesterle, Simone Bretz, Lisa Frenzel, Heike Stege, Iris Winkelmeyer, Oliver Hahn and Gisela Geiger

Geotechnical and geophysical investigation techniques in Ben Ezra Synagogue in Old Cairo area, Egypt

The Ben Ezra Synagogue or El-Geniza Synagogue or the Synagogue of the Levantines, is located in the Coptic section of Old Cairo area. It is considered the oldest Synagogue or Jewish temple found in Egypt repre...

Authors: Sayed Hemeda