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The Night Watch, painted in 1642 and on view in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, is considered Rembrandt's most famous work. X‐ray powder diffraction (XRPD) mapping at multiple length scales revealed the unusual presence of lead(II) formate, Pb(HCOO)2, in several areas of the painting. Until now, this compound was never reported in historical oil paints. In order to get insights into this phenomenon, one possible chemical pathway was explored thanks to the preparation and micro‐analysis of model oil paint media prepared by heating linseed oil and lead(II) oxide (PbO) drier as described in 17th century recipes. Synchrotron radiation based micro‐XRPD (SR‐μ‐XRPD) and infrared microscopy were combined to identify and map at the micro‐scale various neo‐formed lead‐based compounds in these model samples. Both lead(II) formate and lead(II) formate hydroxide Pb(HCOO)(OH) were detected and mapped, providing new clues regarding the reactivity of lead driers in oil matrices in historical paintings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carboxylates, Lead Formate, Pigments, Rembrandt, X-Ray Diffraction Keywords: Carboxylates; Lead Formate; Pigments; Rembrandt; X-Ray Diffraction EN Carboxylates Lead Formate Pigments Rembrandt X-Ray Diffraction 1 1 1 04/05/23 20230411 NES 230411 B Heritage Science b . In their Research Article (e202216478), Victor Gonzalez et al. report the detection and distribution of lead(II) formate in Rembrandt's I Night Watch i from the macro- to the microscale. [Extracted from the article]