Characterization of seventeenth century papers from Valvasor's collection of the Zagreb Archdiocese

Abstract

Valvasor's library is a unique example of a Seventeenth century personal library, including over 7300 prints and 1530 books. Today, it is kept in the Metropolitan Library of the Zagreb Archdiocese which is part of the Croatian State Archives. In this study, we analysed a selection of papers from Valvasor's collection (VC) of unknown origin and composition. We used a dual approach, combining the results of the analyses of two sets of samples to find the most useful tools for the characterization of historical handmade papers. 144 randomly selected papers were included in the study. As the VC is a cultural heritage, only non-destructive analyses were used, such as visual inspection, surface imaging, measurements of thickness and the determination of optical properties (brightness, yellowness, opacity and gloss). According to the optical properties, papers from the VC could be characterized as yellowish and opaque, without gloss. Due to the fact that the VC papers could not be destroyed, we took another set of samples consisting of 10 historical papers (HP) from archival materials, dating from the 16th to nineteenth century, and subjected them to non-destructive, as well as micro-destructive analyses. This was done to supplement the findings of non-destructive analyses of the original collection. Initially, spot tests were performed to determine water absorbency and to identify the presence of lignin and starch in the paper samples. SEM–EDS and XRF were applied for the identification of inorganic elements. FTIR analyses were used to identify the chemical structures of the paper components. Microscopic analyses were performed in two ways: the paper surface was imaged with a digital microscope, and the morphological characteristics of the fibres were studied using an optical microscope. The dominant fibres present were flax and hemp, with a smaller proportion of cotton. Additionally, thick and thin light brown fibres resembling straw were detected. The presence of calcium-containing components, gelatine and alum could be confirmed with SEM–EDS, XFR and FTIR analysis. Comparing the results of analyses performed on two sets of samples a connection was explored by which it was possible to define the characterization of VC papers. The main goal of the study was to document and characterize a specific collection for the future use of researchers of handmade paper or paper conservators. Furthermore, the study may serve as a model approach for other researchers who seek to document the characteristics of paper in their collections.

Establishing the original order of the poems in Harward’s Almanac using paleography, codicology, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, and statistical analysis

“…Si was consistently detected though the book. The presence of Si in rag paper is reported in literature to be associated with the presence of straw, high in silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) [ 25 ]. Cu and Zn in minor concentrations were also identified in the XRF spectra.…”

Utilizing different analytical techniques to determine the composition of the paper support of historical lithographic plate from Belzoni's Atlas

“…Gelatin was identified in the examined sample by the amide I (Typical peptide C=O) and amide II (Typical peptide N-H) absorption bands at about 1643 cm -1 and 1560 cm -1 respectively [12,[40][41][42][43][44][45] and amide III (Typical peptide N-H) absorption band at 1315 cm -1 [13,[40][41][42][43]. As for calcium carbonate in the sample, its presence was confirmed by absorption band in the fingerprint region at 1424 cm -1 and absorption band at 875 cm -1 [13,21,24,27,33,42,43,[45][46][47][48][49]. A broad peak at 1424 cm −1 includes the vibration of C = O bonds in the carbonate ion (CO 3 2− ) [50,51], and the band at 875 cm -1 belongs also to the C=O bonds in carbonate anion [50].…”

Characterization of Korean handmade papers collected in a Hanji reference book

“…Material characterization can provide useful information on paper composition and conservation state [22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. Investigation on traditional East Asian handmade papers employed a variety of material characterisation methods such as physical property measurements [22,23,30], microscopy observation [31][32][33] and chemical composition analysis [34][35][36].…”