Raman Spectroscopy of the Works of Szymon Czechowicz (1689-1775)

The paper presents the results from Raman spectroscopy (RS) analyses of the works of Szymon Czechowicz and his workshop ‒ the most important Polish baroque painter. RS was used for clarification and supplementation of results carried out by the methods: Infrared False Colour (IRFC), XRF, XRD, SEM-ED...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mirosław Sawczak, Ewa Doleżyńska-Sewerniak
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Bologna 2019-12-01
Series:Conservation Science in Cultural Heritage
Subjects:
Online Access:https://conservation-science.unibo.it/article/view/10671
Description
Summary:The paper presents the results from Raman spectroscopy (RS) analyses of the works of Szymon Czechowicz and his workshop ‒ the most important Polish baroque painter. RS was used for clarification and supplementation of results carried out by the methods: Infrared False Colour (IRFC), XRF, XRD, SEM-EDS, GC-MS, and ATR-FTIR. A complementary analysis of the artist’s work allowed the characterisation of the fillers and the binders of the grounds and the paint layers in his art. The presented results showed that RS was especially useful for identifying the pigments used in the mixtures. It allowed the presence of Prussian blue in the blue and green colours to be determined and made it possible to distinguish the types of iron pigments in the mixtures. The method was useful also for the identification of several types of black pigments in the samples and to identify the massicot in the ground layers which contained another lead pigment – lead white. Tables and figures show the summation of test results carried out by RS analysis, the indication of specific chemical compounds in the painting layers and grounds, all of which provide additional information about the workshop of the most important painter of Polish Baroque. The main conclusion is that without using RS, it would be impossible to achieve these precise research results, helpful in the authentication of Szymon Czechowicz’s works.
ISSN:1974-4951
1973-9494