Sister Daniilia

Ochre-differentiation through micro-Raman and micro-FTIR spectroscopies: application on wall paintings at Meteora and Mount Athos, Greece

The most widely-used inorganic pigments of Byzantine and post-Byzantine hagiography are earth pigments called ochres such as, red and yellow ochres, limonite, goethite, raw and burnt sienna, caput mortuum and hematite. The present experimental work proposes a technique of differentiation that allows one to distinguish among all the different kinds of iron oxides, thereby providing a better understanding of the painting technique used on portable icons and wall paintings. The ratios between the main spectroscopic peaks, attributable to the major components usually present in ochres, were calculated and compared, one against the another, from the spectra obtained through micro-Raman spectroscopy. Elementary composition is also revealed through a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. The possibility for detailed study on a particular Byzantine ochre palette can thus be performed based on the small differences in its nature and composition. These differences can first be observed and then measured among all of the natural earth pigments, through microRaman and microFTIR spectroscopies.

Panselinos’ Byzantine wall paintings in the Protaton Church, Mount Athos, Greece: a technical examination

Abstract The sole surviving fresco paintings of Manuel Panselinos (13th century AD), one of the most celebrated Greek iconographers of the Byzantine era, are located in the Protaton Church (10th century AD) on Mount Athos, Greece. This paper presents an examination and technical analysis of 15 representative thematic scenes, covering an area of approximately 65 m 2 , from these monumental works of art. The following exhaustive study and documentation of both the original and the subsequently restored areas of the wall paintings were made possible by using various imaging techniques, including visible and ultra-violet photography, infrared reflectography, colour measurements and representation. The chemical identification of the pigments, binders and layer stratigraphy was achieved through the use of visible and ultra-violet fluorescence microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform μspectroscopy (μFTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive analysis (SEM-EDS) and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). A collaborative analysis, its results demonstrate that the paintings were executed in both the true fresco and lime-painting techniques. They have also established Panselinos’ choice of materials and colour palette. We believe this study to be an important and necessary prerequisite for the future preservation and restoration of these unique frescoes.

Evaluating a Cumaean Sibyl : Domenichino or later? A multi analytical approach

The purpose of this study is to clarify important details about a Cumaean Sibyl painting that is preserved in a private collection. This work, bearing neither signature nor date, has never undergone conservation. It was executed after Domenichinos Cumaean Sibyl, a work known to have been used as a model by many 18th century painters. Investigation of the anonymous artists painting technique and identification of its constituent materials were facilitated by employing optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM/EDS), FTIR and microRaman spectroscopies and high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC-DAD). The painters palette comprised lead white, yellow ochre, lead-antimonate yellow (Naples yellow), cinnabar, cochineal lake, madder lake, haematite, Prussian blue and carbon black. The detection of Prussian blue (synthesized in 1704 and widely used as artists pigment after 1750) was decisive in establishing the works authenticity for, as such, it cannot be attributed either to Domenico Zampieri (1581-1641) or to his apprentices. In addition, the identification of Naples yellow, which prevailed in the period from 1750 to 1850, supports this statement. Nevertheless, its elaborate painting technique strongly suggests an artist greatly influenced by the Renaissance masters. A comparison of its stylistic features with those of the Cumaean Sibyl of Angelica Kauffmann (1741-1807), a prolific 18th century artist known to have studied and to have copied Domenichinos Sibyl, reveals significant similarities between the two in composition and palette. The unsigned Sibyl, therefore, could well be by Kauffmann.

Material aspects of icons. A review on physicochemical studies of Greek icons.

Holy icons created in the Byzantine era are a vital entity in Orthodox Christianity, a living tradition unbroken over more than 1500 years. The importance of these symbolic representations has inspired interdisciplinary studies to better understand the materials and process of their construction. Researchers from a variety of fields are working together to place icons in their proper historical and cultural framework, as well as to develop long-term conservation strategies. In this Account, we review very recent analytical results of the materials and painting methods used in the production of Byzantine iconography. The care of icons requires particular attention because of their function; icons are objects of veneration and, for the most part, still stand in todays churches to serve ritual practices. Accordingly, they are affected by random, fluctuating environmental conditions aggravated by public access. Because of the holiness of the icons, the typical tradition of the church is to periodically restore the depicted scenes, either by retouching any defects or by partial or complete overpainting. These interventions greatly increase the complexity of the paint stratigraphy. To reveal the extent and quality of the original painting under several historical overpaintings or dirt overlays on the icon, researchers usually pursue a manifold approach, combining complementary multispectral imaging and spectroscopic techniques nondestructively. Unfortunately, a visual and exhaustive spectroscopic examination of a minimum number of cross-sectional microsamples is almost always necessary to clarify the structure of the paint layers and map the constituent materials identified therein. A full understanding of these details is critical for assessing the painting methods, stylistic conventions, and compositional concepts that render the different iconographic details. Cross-sectional micro-Raman spectroscopy, although time-consuming, now affords the direct identification of the distinct grains of almost all of the inorganic pigments and inert components included in the paint layers. Micro-Raman studies are complemented and cross-checked by micro-FTIR and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) studies. This approach is essential in documenting the evolution of the materials and techniques used in creating icons over the centuries. Analytical data on Greek icons are now available for comparison with similar results from other important schools of iconography, such as in the eastern Mediterranean, the Balkans, or Russia, or, further, with Western schools of painting. The research constitutes a reference base for identifying and solving analytical problems, such as those related to the organic materials found in icons that have not yet been systematically studied. Moreover, the results on icons are also generally applicable to important analytical issues encountered in studying any multilayered paint stratigraphies.