Analysis of Fe valence states in iron-gall inks from XVIth century manuscripts by 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy

Mössbauer spectroscopy analysis of valence state of iron in historical documents obtained from the National Library of South Africa

“…It therefore follows that the determination of the concentration Fe 2+ in historical documents is of paramount importance in assessing the potential risk of further oxidative degradation of such documents. Mössbauer spectroscopy (MS) and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) analysis have been used to determine the valence state of iron in a variety of samples [10,11]. In particular, MS has been used to determine the valence states of Fe in iron-gall inks of 16th century manuscripts [11].…”

“…Mössbauer spectroscopy (MS) and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) analysis have been used to determine the valence state of iron in a variety of samples [10,11]. In particular, MS has been used to determine the valence states of Fe in iron-gall inks of 16th century manuscripts [11]. However, in all the literature surveyed, no MS measurements have been done yet to determine the valence state of trace quantities of iron within ink-free paper samples.…”

Application of analytical pyrolysis for the characterisation of old inks

“…In recent years particular attention has been given to iron-gall inks analysis due to their effects in the corrosion processes which affect library collections all over the world [8]. Visual examination of ink corroded papers shows the appearance of a brown colour both on the covered side and on the reverse side of the page which lead the paper to become more and more brittle and eventually to disappear after several hundred years.…”

Mössbauer studies of subfossil oak

“…Its dark colour, which ranges from brown over brownish green to deeply black, results largely from reactions of the iron with the tanning agents in the oak wood. These reactions may be similar to those made use of in the production of ferro-gallic inks [9][10][11][12][13].…”