51369
Accession Number
39180
Editor
Nevin, Austin; Doherty, Tiarna
Title Of Article Chaper
Unraveling the History of Two Fifteenth-Century Spanish Panels
Title Of Journal Book
The Noninvasive Analysis of Painted Surfaces: Scientific Impact and Conservation Practice
Volume
5
Pages
37-51
Collation
15 p. : ills.
Reference Bibliography
Includes bibliographic references
Publisher
Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press
Publisher City
Washington, DC
ISSN
1949-2367 (online); 1949-2359 (print)
Language Of Text
English
Language Of Summary
English
Literature Type
Monograph
Literature Level
Analytic
Abstract
This paper presents the results of a technical investigation of two panel paintings
from the collection of the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum, Aachen, formerly attributed to a Burgundian workshop and more recently to an unknown Spanish workshop. The study applied methods
of noninvasive analysis that aimed to understand the painting process and the conservation history
and to reevaluate the attribution of the panels. Noninvasive analysis was carried out using stereomicroscopy, ultraviolet fluorescence, raking light topographical studies, X-radiography, infrared reflectography, and portable X-ray fluorescence. Microsamples were taken for examination of layers
and material analysis using scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and
Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results of the technical study informed both the attribution of the works to the Kingdom of Aragon, Catalonia, or the Province of Valencia and decisions
for the conservation treatment of the panels. The study also corroborated that the paintings are
remnants of a much larger unknown altarpiece. At present, no workshop attribution can be established, but it is clear that the paintings are characteristic of a small group of master artists-craftsmen
practicing at the end of the fifteenth century.
from the collection of the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum, Aachen, formerly attributed to a Burgundian workshop and more recently to an unknown Spanish workshop. The study applied methods
of noninvasive analysis that aimed to understand the painting process and the conservation history
and to reevaluate the attribution of the panels. Noninvasive analysis was carried out using stereomicroscopy, ultraviolet fluorescence, raking light topographical studies, X-radiography, infrared reflectography, and portable X-ray fluorescence. Microsamples were taken for examination of layers
and material analysis using scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and
Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results of the technical study informed both the attribution of the works to the Kingdom of Aragon, Catalonia, or the Province of Valencia and decisions
for the conservation treatment of the panels. The study also corroborated that the paintings are
remnants of a much larger unknown altarpiece. At present, no workshop attribution can be established, but it is clear that the paintings are characteristic of a small group of master artists-craftsmen
practicing at the end of the fifteenth century.
Keywords
analysis;noninvasive;panel;painting
pub_id
51369