Selected presentation abstracts, with an informal introduction from the speakers.
ESRF, ID21
At ID21, we usually analyze small and complex samples. We have many applications in the fields of medicine, environmental science, earth science, but also of Cultural Heritage. Many tiny fragments sampled from Van Gogh paintings, Chinese porcelains, herculaneum papyri, etc, have been investigated using the synchrotron X-ray and infrared beams and these analyses shed new light on the history of works of art (how they were manufactured) and on their conservation state.
EXAMINING WORKS OF ART WITH SYNCHROTRON-BASED MICRO-PROBES
M. Cotte1,2*, H. Castillo-Michel1, L. Cormier3, O. Dargaud4, W. De Nolf1, B. Hesse1, K. Janssens5, L. Monico6,5, E. Pouyet1, M. Salomé1, P. Sciau7, L. Verger3,4, T. Wang7
1. ID21, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, 71 av. des martyrs 38000 Grenoble, France
2. Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS, UMR 8220, Laboratoire d’archéologie moléculaire et structurale (LAMS), 4 place Jussieu 75005 Paris, France
3. IMPMC, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS UMR 7590, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, 4 place Jussieu, 75005 Paris, France
4. Cité de la Céramique - Sèvres et Limoges, 2 place de la Manufacture, 92310 Sèvres (France)
5. Univ. of Antwerp, AXES Research group, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium
6. SMAArt Centre-Univ. of Perugia and CNR-ISTM, via Elce di Sotto 8, 06123 Perugia, Italy
7. CEMES, CNRS, Toulouse University, Toulouse, France
As early as he discovered X-rays in 1895, Roentgen envisaged their possible application for the study of works of art. More than a century later, X-rays are routinely used for the analysis of artworks. In parallel to the development of portable X-ray instruments for on-site analyses of entire objects, synchrotron-based micro-probes are increasingly used to characterize, at the sub-micron scale, very complex materials from sub-millimeter fragments [1]. Experiments usually address questions about the manufacturing of the objects (e.g. origin of blue decorations in Chinese porcelains [2], Figure 1; or use of chromium oxide in Sèvres porcelains [3]) as well as questions related to degradation and preservation (e.g. degradation process of lead chromate pigments in Van Gogh’s paintings [4], or formation of dark patina on modeling materials in Rodin’s sculptures [5]). The complexity of materials usually calls for the combination of different analytical techniques (e.g. μXRF, μXAS, μXRD and μFTIR as well), usually performed as 2D maps.
Figure 1: Figure 1: Analyzing the origin of the colour in Chinese Qinghua blue decors (Ming dynasty) by a combination of μXRF, Full-field XANES at Co K-edge and μXRD at ID21, ESRF; from [2].
References
I am beamline responsible at ID21 and my research is focused on the study of ancient materials.
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