The Getty Conservation Institute, an operating program of the J. Paul Getty Trust, is committed to raising public awareness of the importance of preserving cultural heritage worldwide and to furthering scientific knowledge and professional practice in the field of conservation. The Institute conducts research, training, documentation, and conservation activities in several major areas including objects and collections, archaeological sites and monuments, and historic buildings and sites. Research in Conservation This reference series is intended to make available the findings of research conducted by the Getty Conservation Institute and its individual and institutional research partners, as well as state-of-the-art reviews of conservation literature. Each volume covers a separate topic of current interest and concern to conservators.
Though infrared spectroscopy is the single most powerful technique for the characterization of materials and though it is widely used in the chemical industries, its application to conservation has been severely limited due to the complexity and limited sample size of the materials presented for examination. In the past decade, the development of infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy has made possible the study of small samples and complex mixtures. The technique of infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy is compared to conventional infrared spectroscopy with reference to spectra of paper, egg yolk, albumin, madder, Indian yellow, purpurin, alizarin, indigo, and linseed oil.
The appeal of ancient fossilized tree resin, or amber, has made pieces with animal and plant inclusions particularly prized. Unfortunately, amber forgeries are more convincingly and routinely made than most other kinds of fossils, by embedding organisms in natural resins (e.g., copal) or synthetic resins (especially polyester) or by filling a carved niche in a natural piece of amber with resin and a modem inclusion. The confusion of organisms in copal (forged and natural) for ones in amber has a long history. Reviewed here are simple tests for discerning forgeries and natural inclusions in both substances. We discuss an old but sophisticated technique for crafting amber forgeries from authentic amber and present several new examples from old collections in two large museum collections. Also discussed is the widespread use of polyester resin forgeries in the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
INTRODUCTION TO "AMBER FORGERIESFor centuries, the myriad insects, plants, and other organic inclusions in amber have been prized for their exquisitely preserved detail and the warm color and clarity of the matrix itself. Amber is fossilized tree resin, and the organisms that became mired in the once-flowing resin were preserved not only in their original size and shape, but were essentially mummified by dehydration and polymerization of the resin. In fact, it appears that amber preserves DNA more consistently than any other kind of fossil: it is a unique window to the past.Collectors (including professional and amateur paleontologists) compete for acquisition of the rarest, most exceptional amber fossils. Small vertebrates and large arthropods, such as scorpions, command very high prices. Convincing forgeries are relatively easy to make, and the financial and scientific stakes can be quite high. Forgeries were presented as gifts to medieval royalty, and the problem persists today.The Authentic Specimens -A particular mystique surrounds amber specimens that contain small vertebrate inclusions, which can easily command $10,000 U.S. or more. High financial stakes make them among the most common forgeries, but also the ones most readily scrutinized and identified.
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