Sophia Sotiropoulou

This document outlines aspects of innovation considered relevant for HS and proposes general actions for an Exploitation plan. Innovation is an essential component of the strategic objectives of E-RIHS. It encompasses novel research actions, offer of unique access services and provision of smart tools. Exploiting innovation, for the benefit of the E-RIHS ecosystem and the society, requires a number of actions along the innovation chain, including the presence of an efficient monitoring and evaluation system, appropriate knowledge and technology transfer channels, proper IPR protection and efficient communication with key stakeholders both in the public and the private sectors. An overall systematic approach to the above will ensure success and sustainability of ERIHS as an innovator and as a leader in the global HS landscape. This document is Deliverable 6.2, elaborated in the context of project IPERION HS, WP-06: Innovation and Exploitation, Task 6.4: Exploitation Plan. The analysi...

La presente etude a ete effectuee sur quelques couches de preparation de nature differente et concerne l'alteration de la couleur sous conditions d'environnement hostiles a la conservation des oeuvres d'art peintes. L'etude de l'instabilite chromatique des preparations sous conditions defavorables est importante compte tenu de l'impact qu'elle peut avoir sur les couches de peinture et par consequent sur l'impression esthetique generale du tableau ainsi que sur son etat de conservation. L'etude de l'alteration de couleur des preparations vise a expliquer les raisons qui sont a l'origine d'une deterioration d'une oeuvre d'art, afin de fournir les donnees contribuant a la conservation appropriee et a une eventuelle restauration de l'oeuvre si necessaire. L'etude comprend sept sortes de preparation, de couleur blanche, de composition correspondant aux quatre plus importantes categories de preparation, de caractere absorbant, mi-absorbant, huileux et caseineux. A ce propos, 35 echantillons rectangulaires, de taille 2,8 cm x 3 cm, ont ete prepares et ont subi les epreuves experimentales suivantes: A. variations de temperature, B. exposition a l'humidite, C. exposition a la radiation ultraviolette, D. variations cycliques de temperature, E. exposition a une atmosphere SO 2 . Les mesures de couleur avant, durant et apres chaque epreuve ont ete effectuees au systeme colorimetrique uniforme L ucs a ucs b ucs . Le changement de couleur durant et a la fin de chaque epreuve a ete mesure selon la formule ΔE CMC [CMC(I:c)]. Le bilan des resultats manifeste une resistance remarquable des preparations de caractere absorbant et caseineux, qui restent pratiquement inchangees, alors que celles de caractere huileux et mi-absorbant presentent une alteration de couleur considerable.

The preservation of the Athenian Acropolis monuments constitutes an ongoing top-priority national project of global significance and impact. The project concerning the analytical investigation of the polychromy of the Acropolis monuments presented in this paper was part of the Acropolis Restoration Service (YSMA) program (2011–2015), regarding the restoration of the two corners of the west entablature of the Parthenon, which exhibited severe static damage, and a parallel restoration program of the Propylaea. The scope of this research was to investigate the materials in the paint decoration remains on the monuments by applying, entirely in situ, numerous non-invasive techniques on selected architectural members of the Parthenon and the Propylaea. The research focused, mainly, on surfaces where traces of colour or decoration patterns were visible to the naked eye. Furthermore, surfaces that are referred to in the literature as decorated but that are currently covered with weathering ...

Innovation constitutes the goal and at the same time the medium for achieving all E-RIHS strategic objectives and therefore the Innovation Agenda addresses all research actions and services, training and communication as well as collaborations with other RIs and Industry (in the broad sense), in the Heritage domain. The 'Innovation Agenda' represents the main action plan that reflects the priorities set in key areas and provides those mechanisms and structures necessary to enable innovation in any specific identified direction. The document reviews mechanisms, internal rules and procedures concerning the E-RIHS Innovation Strategy and discusses issues related to formulating, managing and keeping up-to-date the Innovation Agenda. A systematic approach in monitoring innovation, defining metrics and indicators (KPI's), will provide a reliable assessment of the innovation impact to Excellence, Synergies and Co-creation, Users and public engagement and the Sustainability of E...

The monitoring of performance characteristics of resins was always an issue for the conservation community, since the stability of the art objects depends on the service life of conservation materials used. Among the resins commonly applied in the field of paintings conservation, four of the most popular ones, Paraloid B72, Primal AC33 (acrylic polymers), Ketone Resin N (cyclohexanone) and Laropal A81 (urea-aldehyde) were selected to be comparatively studied under accelerated ageing conditions. These resins have been used by the art conservators either as consolidant materials of the paint or as protecting varnishes for the painting surface. The behaviour of the coatings under thermal ageing was investigated following a methodology depositing films of all materials onto different solid substrates (silicon wafers, quartz and simple glass slides) depending on the method of analysis used. Accelerated thermal ageing tests were conducted at 100 o C, for up to 432 hours. The morphological...

The document presents the final findings of WP4 activities in the context of complete research scenarios, created by domain experts and designed to be displayed within the Standardization Survival Kit web application. All PARTHENOS deliverables are available at: http://www.parthenos-project.eu/resources/projects-deliverables

The production and use of the pigment extracted from the murex molluscs is discussed here in association with the purple textile dyeing industry in the Prehistoric Aegean. “True” purple has been identified in a number of archaeological finds dating from the early Late Bronze Age, found in old and recent excavations at three different but contemporary sites: Akrotiri and Raos on Thera, and Trianda on Rhodes. The chemical composition of the shellfish purple pigment either found in lump form or applied on wall paintings is discussed in relation to the archaeological context of several examined finds and with reference to Pliny’s purpurissum. The results of a comprehensive methodology combining new data obtained with molecular spectroscopies (microRaman and FTIR) and already reported data obtained with high performance liquid chromatography coupled with a diode array detector (HPLC–DAD) applied to samples of the murex purple finds are discussed in comparison to published data relating t...

Abstract An important example of a mixture of red colourants from plant and insect sources has been found during a recent investigation of a purple pigment on a 3rd century BC oinochoe from Canosa di Puglia present in the British Museum collection. Further investigation was carried out to elucidate both the nature of this pigment and its possible method of manufacture. In a practice typical of the period, Egyptian blue and a pink lake were found to be physically mixed to produce the purple pigment observed on the object. High pressure liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) revealed that the main colourant of the pink lake was derived from madder (Rubia spp.). However, the samples investigated also contained markers for insect-derived colourants from cochineal (Porphyrophora spp., in partial agreement with recent archaeological findings from Thessaloniki) and lac (Kerria Lacca Kerr). Despite allusions to its existence in ancient sources, evidence for the use of lac dye as a colourant (in a lake pigment) from Antiquity has never previously been found. In addition, markers indicative of tannins were also found in the mixture. This was interpreted as an indication of the reuse of a colourant that has been extracted from previously dyed textiles. Although common practice in the manufacture of red lakes from the 14th to 17th centuries, this may be the first evidence for this method to produce lake pigments found on an object from Antiquity. In addition to confirming the power of HPLC-MS in terms of the sensitivity and specificity of information, that in many cases allows species differentiation, these discoveries raise many questions, not least of which is the real extent of use of insect-derived colourants, as part of the polychrome palette of these votive objects and ancient polychromy in general. The implications of this use in the wider context of pigment manufacture in Antiquity, particularly in terms of the trade in raw materials, must also be considered.

What the discerning gaze of the art historian has deduced from comparisons in style – namely, that the unsigned Baptism of Christ (dated 1567) comes from the hand of the master Cretan painter, El Greco – is now investigated by the dispassionate eye of technology. The examination by means of analytical methods of diagnosis aimed at making an in-depth investigation into the hitherto unknown personal traits of the artist’s painting technique. By observing the cross-sections under the optical microscope and analyzing the materials through the application of μRaman and μFTIR spectroscopies and of high performance liquid chromatography (HPCL/DAD), it was possible to reveal the “fingerprints” of the artist’s brushwork. In his masterfully executed Baptism, El Greco has succeeded through his perspicacity and ingenuity, to combine traditional techniques of Byzantine icon-painting with the innovative practices of Venetian Renaissance art. The artist’s palette contains mineral, earth and natura...

The St. Euthymius wall paintings, in the Cathedral of Thessaloniki, dated 1303 AD., are stylistically attributed to the School of Panselinos, one of the most important painters of Palaeologean Art. An in situ non-invasive study has been carried out as part of a MOLAB project (a mobile laboratory accessible through the Eu-ARTECH project, funded by the EC 6th FP) combining different analytical techniques such as XRF, mid-FTIR and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. It was during this comprehensive in situ study that certain scientific queries were raised about sensitive areas, where indications of the phenomena of decay requested further attention. A subsequent laboratory study of selected cross-sections using microscopic analysis with μFTIR, SEM-EDS and μRaman, further confirmed the identification of only the atypical in situ observations. The comparative interpretation of all respective results on the specific regions of interest permitted the identification of several degradat...

Understanding the original techniques in the creation of an artwork is a prerequisite for the selection of the most appropriate conservation method. This is particularly essential in wall paintings where control of potential agents of deterioration and efficient monitoring are limited due to the scale of the paintings and their exposure to uncontrollable environmental fluctuations. Analytical studies are increasingly focused on the investigation and study of degradation products of organic binders originally added in the paintings on a lime-based plaster ground. In the framework of IPERION-CH (Integrated Platform for the European Research Infrastructure ON Cultural Heritage) project, a collaborative task is dedicated to obtain knowledge about original organic materials used in wall paintings by evaluating and comparing different innovative methodologies and conventional diagnostic techniques used for the investigation of markers related to alteration mechanisms and degradation products. The non-invasive and microsampling methodology is first optimized on well-defined models that have been designed to simulate different painting techniques with limewater and five organic binders in different relative proportions. Future investigations will focus on the application of the optimized methodology on archaeological samples. In the present paper, preliminary results on a selected set of models, submitted in different stages of a well-established artificial ageing protocol, demonstrate the specific complementary input of each analytical technique included in the analytical approach (colour measurements, micro FTIR-ATR analyses in cross-sections, Evolved Gas Analysis-Mass Spectrometry and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry). The comparative evaluation and interpretation of the results is a step forward in the optimization of the approach and in relating the analytical findings detected on the analysed samples to the original compounds and the possible changes for each group of binders (proteins/gums) due to degradation or interaction depending on the pigment/metal ion present.

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 today's 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.

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 m2, 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.