Search

The article aims to show how a transdisciplinary approach can contribute to a better understanding of the composite biography of a precious object. The study focuses on the Cintola del Duomo (Museum of the Opera del Duomo, Pisa), one of the most famous objects in the history of goldsmithing, both for its exceptional manufacturing quality and for its devotional value. For a long time, the Cintola was considered a fragment of a long garland – decorated with precious stones, enamel, and silver plates – that was displayed on the façade of the Cathedral on certain days of the liturgical calendar. Detailed historical studies suggested that the garland was lost in the early 1300s, while the object now in the museum is more likely to be a reconstruction, decorated with ancient and modern gems. In situ diagnostic campaigns were carried out on the garland using portable Raman spectroscopy (i-Raman, B&W Tek) and portable X-Ray fluorescnece (XRF) (Elio, Bruker) to reveal the identity of the gems and enamels preliminarily studied by gemmological analysis. The combination of analytical techniques made it possible to better outline the complex history of the artefacts. The analysis provided information on the identity of the gems, proposing an interesting question about their possible relationship with the crown of Henry VII of Luxembourg (in the same museum). The study includes aspects related to the materiality of the objects, revealing the socio-cultural context in which the object was produced and supporting its recontextualisation in the museum as a symbolic representation of the past.

Imaging systems are the basic tools of the trade for art historians, conservators, and archaeologists, when they are called to document the results of their work. However, photo cameras and imaging systems are also powerful research tools. These systems, in fact, are inherently portable and give the possibility of acquiring high-resolution, spectrally resolved digital images that can be elaborated exploiting the most advanced algorithms of information science. In this contribution, we will outline the many possibilities opened by the available instrumentation and techniques, to suggest the use of image analysis as the first step of the diagnostic process in Cultural Heritage conservation and study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Methods for revealing hidden details in ancient manuscripts and paintings are presented. • Different experimental approaches are described. • The most effective techniques of image analysis are introduced. • Special attention is given to multi-spectral imaging and blind separation methods. • Several case studies are presented. In this work, a critical review of the current nondestructive probing and image analysis approaches is presented, to revealing otherwise invisible or hardly discernible details in manuscripts and paintings relevant to cultural heritage and archaeology. Multispectral imaging, X-ray fluorescence, Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and Thermography are considered, as techniques for acquiring images and spectral image sets; statistical methods for the analysis of these images are then discussed, including blind separation and false colour techniques. Several case studies are presented, with particular attention dedicated to the approaches that appear most promising for future applications. Some of the techniques described herein are likely to replace, in the near future, classical digital photography in the study of ancient manuscripts and paintings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present a critical review on the applications of the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) technique in cultural heritage and archaeology. The strategies used by the groups involved in this kind of research for the analysis of the typical materials of interest (metals, pigments, pottery, glass, etc.) are discussed in detail, as well as the use of LIBS in combination with other techniques (LIBS and Raman, LIBS and XRF, and LIBS and MS). Specific applications of LIBS as a support for cultural heritage restoration and the application of the technique for the analysis of underwater objects are presented in separate sessions. In conclusion, new trends of LIBS for cultural heritage and archaeology (micro-LIBS analysis, 3D elemental imaging, and surface- and nanoparticle-enhanced LIBS) are introduced and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]