1,721,308 research outputs found
Gilt stuccoes of the italian baroque
No full textC. Colombo, L. Toniolo, S. Bruni, P. Fermo, A. Casoli, G. Palla, C. L. Bianchi, Gilt stuccoes of the italian baroque. Studies in Conservation, 43, 1998, 201-208
The effects of air pollution on cultural Heritage : the case study of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio Grande (Milan)
Full text linkAtmospheric pollution causes monuments surface degradation in urban environments. Among the degradation processes the formation of black crusts (BCs) is one of the most dangerous phenomenon. During this process, aerosol particulate matter (PM) can be embedded into gypsum, one of the main crusts constituents, providing the characteristic black colour. EC (elemental carbon) and OC (organic carbon) are the responsible for the yellowing and blackening processes occurring on the surfaces and their quantification in the crusts can provide information on the contribution of atmospheric pollution sources to the degradation products formation. This research study is focused on the characterization of BCs collected from the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio Grande in Milan, from the point of view of the effects of atmospheric pollution on cultural heritage. The analysed samples consist of mortars and bricks partially degraded and covered with black crusts. Appling different analytical techniques, such as FTIR/ATR, CHN, TGA and IC, the crusts composition has been investigated focusing on the quantification of the carbonaceous fraction. This integrated approach has allowed to identify the sources of pollution responsible for the decay of the different building materials of the church
Bismuth knowledge during the Renaissance strengthened by its use in Italian lustres production
No full textThe knowledge of bismuth during the XV and XVI centuries represents an open question since, according to some authors, this element was confused with lead, tin and silver. On the contrary, G. Agricola (1494-1555), the pioneer of mineralogical science in Europe, in his two works (De Natura Fossilium, Lib X, 1546 and Bermannus Sive De Re Metallica Dialogus, 1528) asserts that bismuth was considered as an element distinct from the other metals at that time. This question gave rise to some interest, and von Lippmann in 1930 wrote a treatise dealing with the history of bismuth between 1400 and 1800. In this work we present the results obtained on Italian and Hispano-Moresque shards studied by means of X-ray diffraction, atomic absorption spectrometry with electrothermal atomisation, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and scanning electron microscopy. It seems that our work could provide a new and important contribution to this debate, because we found bismuth in lustre composition of Renaissance shards produced in central Italy. Furthermore, we found that it could also be considered as a discriminating element between Italian and Hispano-Moresque productions, useful to assess their origin
The Use of Nano-Particles to Produce Iridescent Metallic Effects on Ancient Ceramic Objects
No full textNano-sized materials have been often used in the past to realize objects with particular characteristics. One of the most outstanding examples is represented by luster pottery, showing shining surfaces with particular optical properties. Luster was one of the most sophisticated technique for the decoration of majolicas. It consists of a thin metallic film contg. silver, copper and other substances, like iron oxide and cinnabar, applied in a reducing atm. on a previously glazed ceramic. In such a way, beautiful iridescent reflections of different colors (in particular gold and ruby-red) are obtained. This technique, at first developed in Iraq, was introduced in Italy from Spain. In Italy the potters of the two centers of Gubbio and Deruta, in central Italy, became so expert that nowadays modern artisans are not able to reproduce the wonderful effects obtained during Renaissance. A complete characterization by means of numerous techniques has been carried out on a great no. of shards and precious work of arts conserved in many important museums. This allowed to draw some correlations between the prepn. technique and the obtained nano-structure
A PROVENANCE STUDY ON DIFFERENT RENAISSANCE CERAMIC PRODUCTIONS BASED ON XRD AND FT-IR SPECTROSCOPY
No full textThe attribution problem related to different ceramic productions represents a topic of great interest and generally an archaeometric approach is commonly used. In the framework of a more comprehensive study on lustred majolicas from Italian Renaissance [1,2], we looked at the possibility to distinguish two different kind of Italian productions in central Italy (Gubbio and Deruta, Umbria), on the base of the chemical and the mineralogical composition of the ceramic body [3]. A study was carried out on "second firing" shards characteristic of the two different production sites, in order to identify different features useful for a possible and unambiguous attribution.
Chemometric techniques have been applied to XRD patterns and FT-IR spectra to exploit the potential of these methods in the provenance attribution.
Furthermore, through a comparison with local clays, subjected to cooking, the production technology used by ancient potters was investigated. Differences in the use of the raw materials as well as in the firing temperature have been disclosed
How the masters in Umbria, Italy, generated and used nanoparticles in art fabrication during the Renaissance period
No full textLustre was one of the most sophisticated techniques for the decoration of majolicas during the Renaissance period. Lustre consists of a thin metallic film containing silver, copper and other substances like iron oxide and cinnabar applied in a reducing atmosphere on a previously glazed ceramic. In this way, beautiful iridescent reflections of different colours (in particular gold and ruby-red) are obtained. The characterisation and the study of lustre-decorated majolicas is of great interest for archaeologists, but also offers possibilities for producing pottery with outstanding decoration today, following ancient examples, since nowadays Italian artisans are interested in the reproduction of the ancient recipes and procedures. Moreover, it can even suggest new procedures for obtaining uniform thin metallic films for technological applications. A study has been carried out on ancient lustre layers using numerous different analytical techniques such as XRD, SEM-EDX, TEM-EDX-SAED, ETAAS, ICP-OES, UV-vis reflectance spectroscopy and SAXS. Lustre films were shown to be formed by copper and silver clusters of nanometric dimension. The colour and the properties of the lustre films depend on the elemental composition of the impasto applied to the ceramic surface as well as on other factors like the metallic nanocluster dimension, the firing conditions, the underlying glaze composition and the procedure used
Italian Renaissance and Hispano-Moresque lustre-decorated majolicas: imitation cases of Hispano-Moresque style in central Italy
No full textAn investigation was carried out on Renaissance lustre-decorated majolica shards, found during excavations made in Umbria (central Italy) and defined by experts, on the ground of the surface decoration, as imitations of the Hispano-Moresque style. A comparison between this particular kind of samples, produced in central Italy, and some Hispano-Moresque lustre shards has been performed. The ceramic bodies as well as the lustred surfaces have been analysed by means of several techniques: inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic absorption spectrometry with electrothermal atomisation and scanning electron microscopy. By means of XRD analysis the presence of cosalite (Pb2Bi2S5) has been disclosed in the Italian lustre decorations but was not observed in the Hispano-Moresque ones. A hypothesis has been made, considering bismuth as a discriminating element. between lustres produced in central Italy and the Hispano-Moresque ones. We thought that the Italian artisans were able to manage the use of bismuth. Therefore a recipe. quite similar to the one employed by the Spanish artisans, was used by the Italian ceramists if their aim was to imitate the Hispano-Moresque style
Significant findings concerning the production of Italian Renaissance lustred majolica
No full textIn the present paper the main results obtained, over a period of more than ten years, from a series of studies concerning the characterization of Italian Renaissance lustred majolicas (from Gubbio and Deruta, Umbria, Italy) are presented. Lustre decoration is a well-known technique, consisting in the application of a thin metallic iridescent film, containing silver and copper nanoparticles, over a previously glazed ceramic object. The technique had its origin in Persia (IX century), was imported by Moorish in Spain, and then developed in central Italy during the Renaissance period. Numerous analytical techniques (among which, ETASS, XRD, UV-Vis, SEM-EDX) have been employed for the characterization of lustred ceramic shards, allowing one to acquire information on both lustre chemical composition and nanostructure. In this way it was shown how some technological parameters, such as the firing conditions, are mandatory to obtain the final result. The presence of a specific marker of the lustre Italian production, i.e., cosalite (Pb2Bi2S5), has been also highlighted. From the study of the ceramic body composition (by means of XRD and ICP-OES and in particular of chemometric techniques) acquired on more than 50 ceramic shards it was possible to discriminate between Deruta and Gubbio production, in this way allowing one to assign objects of uncertain provenance to a specific site. Finally, the most interesting results obtained studying excellent lustred masterpieces from Renaissance belonging to important museums are here presented. In particular, with the use of nondestructive techniques (PIXE, RBS, and portable XRD), the production of Mastro Giorgio Andreoli from Gubbio was investigated. By means of the same analytical approach, one of the first examples of lustre in Italy (the famous Baglioni's albarello) was examined, and the controversial question of its attribution to Italian production was scientifically faced
Production of gold and ruby-red lustres in Gubbio (Umbria, Italy) during Renaissance period
No full textThe aim of this work is to gain a further insight into the knowledge of the production process of lustre-decorated ancient majolicas. Lustre is a sophisticated technique employed in the decoration of majolicas as used in central Italy during the Renaissance period. It consists of a beautiful iridescent gold or ruby-red thin metallic film, containing silver, copper and other substances and obtained in a reducing atmosphere on a previously glazed ceramic. Nowadays, it is not possible to replicate the outstanding results obtained by the ancient ceramicists, since the original recipes were lost. It is quite interesting to study lustre-production technology by means of analytical techniques now employed for advanced research on materials (XRD, ETAAS, ICP-OES, TEM-EDX-SAED and UV-Vis). In this work, we have focussed our attention on ceramic fragments decorated with both gold and ruby-red lustres, which were difficult to obtain due to complex reduction conditions required and which were a prerogative of Gubbio production. The two lustre colours differ in their chemical composition as well in their nanostructure. The presence of bismuth was disclosed and it was ascertained to be a distinctive feature of the Italian production
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