Complementary use of the Raman and XRF techniques for non-destructive analysis of historical paint layers

Byzantine wall paintings from Kastoria, northern Greece: Spectroscopic study of pigments and efflorescing salts

“…The peaks at 243 (very strong), 279, 339 cm −1 of sample GEVO16-RED are clearly assigned to mercury sulphide. Red-coloured vermilion pigment has been used in Byzantine and medieval eras, as certified by several authors [5,[13][14][15][16]. However, in our study, most of the red coloured samples are due to iron oxides and hydroxides.…”

“…This mineral, which has been used as a filler or extender [10] has not been identified under Raman microscopy. The minor contents (0.68%) of Sr within the baryte crystal is related to the paragenesis of Sr within Ba-rich minerals [16] The presence of Antimony (Sb) and Molybdenum (Mo) in trace amounts in the red-coloured samples GEVO4 and GEVO10 might be related with the iron oxides present in the pigments of these samples (Table 2). Sb and Mo have also been affiliated with Fe by other scholars [16].…”

“…The chemical composition of the surface area of the Pb-rich sample NIKY13A showed a PbO content of 14.29%. Red lead (Pb 3 O 4 ), also called minium, was also identified by other scholars worldwide [6,13,14,16,17,19] The Raman spectra of the same sample revealed Raman shifts of the orange-coloured pigment (Fig. 5b) at 120 (very strong), 150, 225, 312, 390 and 548 cm −1 , which are characteristic of minium [13,19].…”

Surface layers analysis of bronze artifacts by means of laser spectroscopy techniques

“…In most cases, the poor state of historical metal objects and collections being a significant part of our cultural heritage results from prolonged exposure to adverse environmental conditions This paper presents the results of analysis of the material and patina of the historic bronze mortar (Fig. 1) by means ofRecently, systematic research on historic collections and case studies show that the combination of spectroscopic and optical techniques for elemental, compositional, and structural analysis enhance greatly the reliability of results [2][3]. Moreover, non-destructively operating instruments allow us to keep the impact on valuable and precious objects extremely low.…”

“…1) by means of [1]. Recently, systematic research on historic collections and case studies show that the combination of spectroscopic and optical techniques for elemental, compositional, and structural analysis enhance greatly the reliability of results [2][3]. Moreover, non-destructively operating instruments allow us to keep the impact on valuable and precious objects extremely low.…”