e足conservation the online magazine
No. 22, November 2011
4 The Nomad Conservator By Rui Bordalo
NEWS & VIEWS
5 Intangible Cultural Heritage and Rise of the Meme By Daniel Cull
8 On Some Problems of the Relationship Between Science and Conservation By António João Cruz
14 Historic Conservation Project Begins at “Machu Picchu of the North” By Global Heritage Fund
18 Conservation Matters in Wales Review by Johanna Sandström
22 Microscopy and Microanalysis Applications in Cultural Heritage Research Review by Ana Bidarra
27 MATCONS 2011 Review by Teodora Poiata
33 ICOM‐CC 16th Triennial Conference Review by Rui Bordalo
ARTICLES
40 The External Ion Beam Facility in Portugal for Studying
Cultural Heritage By Victoria Corregidor, Luís Cerqueira Alves, Paula Alexandra Rodrigues, Márcia Vilarigues, Rui C. Silva
53 The Contribution of Transmitted Infrared Imaging to
Non‐Invasive Study of Canvas Paintings at the National Gallery – Alexandros Soutzos Museum, Greece By Anna Moutsatsou, Dimitra Skapoula, Michael Doulgeridis
62 Chinese Islamic Scrolls: a Conservation Case Study By Aristoteles Sakellariou, Lalit Kumar Pathak, Siti Yuhainizar Mohd Ismail
74 Conservation Intervention of Vernacular Architectures: Two Case Studies in Calabria, Italy By Alessia Bianco e‐conser vation
index
E DITORIAL
editorial
The Nomad Conservator
When the computer gained a permanent place in our houses, teleworking or rather the home based work revolution started. But conservation is not one of those professions you can carry out from your computer at home, unless you are working in documentation. On the contrary, conservation has always been work that needs to be done somewhere else. In modern times, this phenomena has reached a dimension never seen before. We often complain about the problems of modern times. We don’t have major revolutions or world wars but things are changing more than we care to notice. It has never been easier or cheaper to travel, just as it seems that it has never been more difficult to hold on to a job. Mobility is the word of reference nowadays. Long‐term contracts are so difficult to get that we must consider them long gone. Short‐term contracts, and/or freelancing, are here to stay and dictate our lives. It is now pretty common to be 35 to 40 years old and have spent the last 10 to 15 years going from project to project, either at academia, in the museum field or in the private sector. Nowadays, mobility is considered as a necessary requirement for the modern work market. In conservation we may contemplate three main types of mobility: micro‐mobility, when you move inside the region where you live; macro‐mobility, when you move continually around your country, which means not going home very often; and inter‐mobility, when you move to another country either permanently or for long‐term periods (2‐5 years). Mobility is great! It allows you to travel, see the world, and if you don’t like something you can always move on to your next target. But it also does not allow you to plan your future, know where you will be living in a few years time, create roots in your community or raise a family, basically it doesn’t let you settle down. This is the true nature of conservation: to go “in situ”, where you are needed, although you might say it has now turned into “to go anywhere you get the chance to”. The whole initial concept is very attractive, to search for a better place, to always move for the better, but when better is not available and you need to move on because your last work or project is just finishing, then it turns into a matter of survival. This may be seen as a sign of present times and not as a major problem. As a factor that is shaping the actual generation of conservator‐restorers and that will probably change the way that conservation is done, I believe it deserves some reflection.
Rui Bordalo Editor‐in‐Chief
e‐conser vation
By Daniel Cull "The meme is not the dancer but the dance." James Gleick [1]
In 2003 the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) was codified, and defined as heritage that is: “...transmitted from generation to generation, is constantly recreated by communities and groups in response to their environment, their interaction with nature and their history, and provides them with a sense of identity and continuity.” [2] The convention talks of language, performance, rituals, and traditional crafts as being “vehicles” of transmission, but doesn’t attribute a particular method of transfer. I was intrigued by the ideas of transmission and recreation, and wondered whether ICH would mesh with an assertion that “all transmitted knowledge is memetic” [3]. The internet has brought the idea of the meme to popular consciousness, with famous memes such as ‘LOLCat’. The meme has been defined as: “a contagious information pattern that replicates by parasitically infecting human minds and altering their behavior, causing them to propagate the pattern” [3]. The meme existed prior to its popula‐ rization online, and traditional memetic concepts include; slogans, catch‐phrases, images, icons, melodies, and fashions, however, an idea “is not a meme until it causes someone to replicate it, to repeat it to someone else” [3]. Furthermore an object is not a meme, no matter the speed or repetition of production, nor of use, the object remains a “meme vehicle” [1], as does its user. Intriguingly the UNESCO convention refers to language, performance, ritual, and traditional e‐conser vation
craft as being “vehicles” of transmission. Religion, or ritual, was identified as one vehicle for the transfer of ICH, and it seems it does exhibit a meme‐ tic nature. I recently experienced this when I walked ‘el Camino de Santiago de Compostela’, a religious pilgrimage through Galicia, in northern Spain, the pilgrimage culminates with a series of rituals at the relics in Santiago de Compos‐ tela Cathedral. Conservation con‐ cerns had limited the ability to per‐ form two of the rituals, touching the Tree of Jesse, and headbutting the statue of Maestro Mateo ‘the Saint of the Bumps’, but I was able to hug the statue of St James above the alter and descend into the tomb to pray at the reliquary casket; join‐ ing these rituals as a ‘meme vehicle’. Many pilgrims on route to Santiago carry scallop shells, a walking staff and a gourd, these objects appear repeatedly in art throughout the region, especially in depictions of St James as a pilgrim (Santiago Peregrino); forming another meme vehicle. Through the realization that the rituals, symbols, art, and I were meme vehicles, it was possible to see the pilgrimage itself as a meme,
news & view
INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE AND RISE OF THE MEME
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Camino road sign.
and this provided one potential explanation for why the pilgrimage route continues to exist and have such resonance today. Another vehicle for transmission was identified as language. Symbols are an excellent example of a language which exhibits the memetic nature of ICH transfer; this is especially evident in contem‐ porary post‐modern politics. As the twitter revolu‐ tion continues around the world with its hashtags #jan25, #15M, and #OccupyWallStreet, museums have rushed to collect material culture pertaining to these protest movements [4]. I’m sure high on their wish list will be a Guy Fawkes mask from the film ‘V for Vendetta’, because of its use on and offline as a symbol of the collective Anonymous [5]. Guy Fawkes was a Roman Catholic conspirator who, in 1605, failed in an attempt to blow up the English Parliament during the state opening by the King. This was a pivotal moment in the 6
creation of the modern British state, a moment that continues to be marked today. The annual burning of an effigy of Guy Fawkes was a potent symbol of Protestant nationalism, but as a result of the secularization of the event in the mid‐ nineteenth century, the image of Guy Fawkes was liberated from the bonfires and replaced with contemporary figures of antagonism, leaving the image of Guy Fawkes to become a “free floating symbol” [6, 156], capable of multiple and shifting meanings. It is this image that has been embraced by protesters across the globe, mirroring the emo‐ tional climax of the film V for Vendetta in which “the audience is treated to an inspirational sight: Evey's beautiful lips, caressing the lifeless fea‐ tures of a Guy Fawkes mask. Evey loves the meme. She loves the symbol, its power, and the way V has wielded this power.” [6, 170] It is this love of the meme that is so relevant to the contemporary political realm, and therefore our understanding of contemporary ICH. To the meme the real and virtual are not bounda‐ ries, the brain and the computer serve the same vehicular function. As the meme becomes a more widely regarded concept it becomes an ever greater potential interpretive avenue for contem‐ plating ICH, leading us to an intriguing question within the study of memes: ‘who is in charge, us or the meme?’ Notes: [1] J. Gleick," What Defines a Meme?", Smithsonian Magazine, May 2011, URL (accessed 04‐11‐2011) [2] UNESCO, Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, 2003, URL (accessed 04‐11‐2011) [3] G. Grant, Memetic Lexicon, 1990, HTMLized by Anders Sandberg, 1994, altered and expanded by e‐conser vation
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David McFadzean, 1995‐1999, URL (accessed 04‐11‐2011) [4] M. Machado and V. Hilbig, Statement: Occupy Wall Street Collecting, Smithsonian/National Museum of American History, URL (accessed 04‐11‐2011) [5] Anonymous is a collective pseudonym, in the tradition of Luther Blisset, Nedd Ludd, or Captain Swing [6] L. Call, "A Is for Anarchy, V is for Vendetta: Images of Guy Fawkes and the Creation of Post‐ modern Anarchism", Anarchist Studies 16(2), 2008
The News section is bringing up‐to‐date information on cultural heritage topics such as on‐site conservation projects reports, reviews of conferences, lectures or workshops and any other kind of appropriate announcements. If you are involved in interesting projects and you want to share your experience with everybody else, please send us your news or announcements. For more details, such as deadlines and publication guidelines, please visit www.e‐conservationline.com
DANIEL CULL Conservator The Musical Instrument Museum Daniel Cull is from the West Country of the British Isles. He trained at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, where he received a BSc in Archaeology, MA in Principles of conser‐ vation, and an MSc in Conservation for Archae‐ ology and Museums. He was later awarded an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship at the National Museum of the American Indian/Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. He currently works as a conservator at the Musical Instrument Museum and as a collaborator with e‐conservation magazine.
Website: http://dancull.wordpress.com Contact: daniel.cull@themim.org
e‐conser vation
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ON SOME PROBLEMS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION By António João Cruz
It is now common ground that Science (exact and natural sciences) is an important and indispen‐ sable support for Conservation. For example, any higher education degree of Conservation contains in its curriculum several courses on Chemistry, Physics, Materials and Biology, which help to understand the materiality of the works to be conserved, and Methods of Examination and Analysis that are fundamental for identification and characterisation of the materials that consti‐ tute the works of art. The importance that Science has for Conservation is also observed in many publications authored or co‐authored by conser‐ vator‐restorers where the knowledge of the exact and natural sciences is increasingly used and relied upon, as seen on several manuals [1‐4].
been developed within the wider context of the application of analytical methods to the resolu‐ tion of problems in Archaeology, History and Art History and many of these studies have only indirect interest for Conservation (Table I). On this wider context, there are other research areas beyond Conservation Science such as Archaeo‐ logical Chemistry, Archaeometry and Technical Art History, to cite some disciplines that have become important in the last years or decades. Obviously, all information about the object may be useful and important for its intervention since it is “impossible to treat what is not known” [5] but it should be borne in mind that there is not always a direct relationship between Science and Conservation.
However, as testified by any manual on methods of examination and analysis relevant for Conser‐ vation or dedicated to conservator‐restorers, this relation between Science and Conservation has
In general, the wide relationship between Science and Conservation, developed since the second half of the XVIII century, has been achieved through three models (Table II).
Table I. General questions that laboratory studies try to answer.
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Question
Aspects involved
What is it made of?
Identification of materials
How was it made?
Identification and characterisation of the techniques and technologies
When was it made?
Dating
Where was it made?
Determination of provenance
Who made it?
Determination of authorship
What purpose did it have?
Determination of function
What is its conservation condition?
Diagnosis of the conservation condition
How did it change?
Determination of the alteration mechanisms
How to preserve it?
Establishment of preventive conservation strategies e‐conser vation
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Table II. Models of the relation between Science and Conservation.
Model Parameter Request to laboratory
Offer from laboratory
Collaboration
Reason of study
Historical problem
Technology application
Conservation and restoration or historical problem
Occurrence
Moderate
Low to moderate
Low
Direct costs for the conservator‐restorer
High
Low or none
Low
Direct implication in Conservation
Low
Variable, but frequently low
Variable
Main problem
Study inadequacy
Difficulty in communication
Dissemination type
Report
Incomprehension of the historical and artistic aspects Paper on international journal
One of the models, the request to the laboratory, corresponds to the situation where someone contacts a laboratory to obtain information about an object. This model goes back at least to the 1770’s, when Thomas Pownall asked the head of the Royal Mint for help for the identification of a metal alloy used in prehistoric swords [6], but it is still current nowadays. Typical cases are those in which a conservator‐restorer uses the services of a laboratory, for example, to identify the constituent materials of the work to be treated and to improve the intervention report. Due to the cost of the services, the study is generally limited and the results have little impact, at least in the Conservation field. Other model is the opposite, the offer from the laboratory, which occurs when someone from the Sciences proposes a project involving works of art or other cultural heritage objects. The underlining intention is to apply the knowledge and technology developed for other purposes to new domains and, thus, to enlarge its area of influence. An early example was the proposal of renowned chemist Humphry Davy on the 1810’s to develop a chemical e‐conser vation
Article or book chapter
process to allow to unroll quickly the scrolls found during the archaeological excavations at Herculanum, in Italy, for which only a time‐consu‐ ming mechanical method existed at the time [7]. More recently, the laboratory offer has increased significantly, specially since 1995, when the Molart (Molecular Aspects of Ageing in Painted Works of Art) project started [8]. This is probably due to the increase of competitiveness within the scientific fields and the consequent tendency of extend their areas of influence. This great offer is clearly revealed by the significant number of papers devoted to the study of the cultural heritage published in journals of Chemistry and Physics, often in thematic issues [9]. It is because of this that there are more papers concerning cultural heritage issues published in journals from other areas referenced on ISI Web of Knowledge than published in journals dedicated to cultural heritage (Table III). Looking for answers to parti‐ cular problems of scientific disciplines rather than to conservation problems, the papers published in Chemistry and Physics journals frequently have little impact on the cultural heritage field, in particular on Conservation, despite the existence 9
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Table III. Number of papers published between 2005 and 2011 on some topics related to Conservation found in ISI Web of Knowledge (search performed on 09.25.2011).
Topic
All journals
Cultural heritage related journals*
Nr.
Nr.
% **
Conservation AND Restoration AND Art
158
11
7
Painting AND Conservation
295
68
23
Painting AND Conservation AND Analysis
139
6
4
Painting AND Pigments
466
36
8
* Archaeometry, International Journal of Architectural Heritage, Journal of Architectural Conservation, Journal of Cultural Heritage, Journal of
the American Institute for Conservation, Restaurator, Studies in Conservation. ** Percentage of papers published in cultural heritage related journals in relation to the total number of papers related to the topic.
of notable exceptions such as the studies from the Molart project. The exceptional situation of this project was certainly due to the fact that it started as an offer from the laboratory but it rapidly developed into other model. This model, the third type of the relation between Science and Conservation, corresponds to the collaboration, in which the work is conceived, planned and developed by a multidisciplinary team working in consonance. This type and its advantages started to be discussed after the First International Conference for the Study of Scientific Methods for Examination and Preservation of Works of Art organised in Rome in 1930 by the prede‐ cessor of ICOM. From this conference resulted a manual on the conservation of paintings written by an international multidisciplinary group [10]. However, the first major study carried out in this way was the study of the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb by Jan van Eyck, coordinated by Paul Core‐ mans in the early 1950’s [11]. The team was com‐ posed of chemists, biologists, art historians, conservator‐restorers and archivists. This type of relation, certainly the most advan‐ tageous from the conservation point of view, is relatively uncommon due to the communication difficulties between the areas that need to be involved, which belong to two different cultures 10
[12]. These difficulties not only undermine the development of studies but also create some conflicts and delicate situations. On this respect, J. R. J. van Asperen de Boer, the inventor of infra‐ red reflectography, made in 1998 an important and clear statement based on his experience of many years about the impact of Sciences in Art History: “The Oxford Dictionary defines ‘impact’ as ‘striking (on, against), collision, effect, influ‐ ence’. The author has held a chair of ‘scientific examination of works of art’, being a physicist by training but operated professionally for more than twenty years within an institute for Art History, and would obviously prefer ‘effect’ or at least ‘influence’ as the accepted connotation. Unfor‐ tunately endeavours to use – or even better – integrate methods of scientific examination in art history are not infrequently seen as ‘striking against’ art historical views or traditions and may thus well lead to ‘collisions’” [13]. The communication difficulties, which naturally also affect the other models, have been addressed and some progress has occurred in this regard in the last decades [14]. However, some recent technological developments oppose this trend. The same van Asperen de Boer also commented this fact when he stated, concerning the Molart project, that “the specialized language used by the participating scientists is not easily grasped e‐conser vation
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by restorers and art historians, not even by the present writer trained as an experimental physicist” [8]. The problems that derive from the existence of both cultures also manifest themselves in the publication of studies. On the one hand, as already mentioned, many papers have appeared recently in international journals of Chemistry and Physics. However, they focused on the search of new areas of application of knowledge, techniques and technologies deve‐ loped elsewhere and end up giving little importance to the works of art and their problems, besides being difficult to read for most conservator‐ restorers. On the other hand, the most adequate journals to publish studies that address issues related to conservation problems, material history and technical characterisation of works of art are unattractive for chemists and physicists. This space is available in the Conservation journals, specially in those with circulation predominantly limited to a country or to a small set of countries, such as Conservar Património (published by ARP, Associação Profissional de Conservadores‐Restau‐ radores de Portugal) [15], ECR ‐ Estudos de Conser‐ vação e Restauro (published by Escola das Artes of Universidade Católica Portuguesa) [16] or Ge‐ conservación (published by the Spanish Conserva‐ tion Group of the International Institute for Conser‐ vation of Historic and Artistic Works) [17]. The problem is that chemists or physicists have little or no interest on such journals. Scientists have a publication dynamics very different from that of conservator‐restorers: they almost limit themselves to publish in journals indexed on ISI Web of Know‐ ledge and any other publication has a negligible impact on their curriculums. Because Conservation journals with national circulation are not part of e‐conser vation
this group, it is difficult for them to receive any study involving Science and Conservation. Although this may not be evident at first sight, the problems related with publishing have equally important implications on another level, namely on the financing of institutions dedicated to Conservation and Restoration. Despite these problems that derive from the existence of two cultures, and the ignorance that conservator‐restorers often have of the details of the analytical processes, these professionals may have a fundamental role on the laboratory study. Indeed, contrary to what one might expect, questions that may be made based on direct and deep knowledge of the materials might influence the entire analytical process. This is particularly evident in the case of identification of the binding media used by Rembrandt, described in detail by Ernest van de Wetering [18]. Shortly, the case started with the idea, which had been gaining importance on mid‐nineteenth century, that some effects found on Rembrandt‘s paintings resulted from the use of a mixture of oil and resin. Thus, as soon as the analytical techniques allowed it, in the 1980’s several paintings by Rembrandt were ana‐ lysed and the presence of resin in the binder was tested. However, according to the results obtained by gas chromatography ‐ mass spectrometry (GC‐ MS), the binder consisted only of oil, since no trace of resin was detected. Given the experience and reputation of the laboratory, these results meant that the effects were only due to the excel‐ lence of Rembrandt’s technique. The results were generally accepted by those working in the labo‐ ratories but were rejected, or at least, doubted by those who knew in detail the subjects regarding to the matter of the painting. For this attitude, the justification was that each material has its limits and, thus, as good as Rembrandt’s technique was, the mixture of oil and resin could not allow 11
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to obtain the diversity of the plastic effects obser‐ ved on the surface of some works. It was then possible to conduct further analysis in other laboratories, this time using other techniques, namely high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). These results showed the use of emulsions formed by oil, water and egg, which have rheological pro‐ perties that may explain the variety of the effects. The differences between the results obtained in the two studies are not due to the technological development that occurred but mostly due to the fact that the analysis were oriented in different ways: in the first case for the detection of resins, in the second for the detection of other possible constituents. So, the analytical results were decisively determined by those who knew well the materials, as it is the case of conservator‐ restorers, ignoring even how the equipments operate. After all, this is merely an illustration of a general situation: there are no good answers without good questions.
[2] B. Stuart, Analytical Techniques in Materials Conservation, John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, 2007 [3] M. Egido, T. Calderón (ed.), La Ciencia y el Arte. Ciencias experimentales y conservación del patrimonio histórico, Instituto del Patrimonio Histórico Español, Madrid, 2008 [4] G. Artioli, Scientific Methods and Cultural Heritage. An Introduction to the Application of Materials Science to Archaeometry and Conserva‐ tion Science, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010 [5] A. V. Remígio, "História da Arte vs. Conservação e Restauro", Newsletter ‐ Associação Portuguesa de Historiadores da Arte 6, 2011, p. 5 [6] T. Pownall, "An account of some Irish anti‐ quities", Archaeologia, Or, Miscellaneous Tracts Relating to Antiquity 3, 1775, pp. 355‐370 [7] H. Davy, "Report on the state of the manu‐ scripts of papyrus, found at Herculaneum", The Quaterly Journal of Literature, Science and the Arts 7, 1819, pp. 154‐161
Note This text is the essence of the communication presented by invitation at the I Encontro Luso‐ brasileiro de Conservação e Restauro that took place on September 26, 2001 at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Porto. I would like to thank the welcome given to this communication, speci‐ ally by the speakers that followed. I also thank Rui Bordalo for his invitation to address this issue and for the English translation. References [1] J. Janssens, R. Van Grieken (ed.), Non‐destruc‐ tive Microanalysis of Cultural Heritage Materials, Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2004 12
[8] J. R. J. A. Boer, "Reflections on MOLART", in M. Clarke, J. Boon (ed.), MOLART. A multidiscipli‐ nary NWO PRIORITEIT project on Molecular Aspects of Ageing in Painted Works of Art. Final Report and Highlights. 1995‐2002, FOM Institute, Amsterdam, 2003, pp. 9‐10 [9] A. J. Cruz, Números temáticos de revistas online, URL (accessed 17‐10‐2011) [10] International Museums Office, Manual on the Conservation of Paintings, 2nd ed., Archetype Publications, London, 1997 [11] P. Coremans (ed.), L'Agneau Mystique au Labo‐ ratoire. Examen et traitement, De Sikkel, Anvers, 1953 e‐conser vation
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[12] C. P. Snow, The Two Cultures, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998 [13] J. R. J. A. Boer, "Some reflections upon the impact of scientific examination on art historical research", in E. Hermens (ed.), Looking Through Paintings. The Study of Painting Techniques and Materials in Support of Art Historical Research, de Prom Publications‐Archetype Publications, Baarn‐ London, 1998, pp. 13‐17 [14] H. Lechtman, R. Stone, K. W. Miller, B. Consi‐ dine, J. Levin, "A matter of teamwork a discussion about technical studies and art history", Conserva‐ tion ‐ The Getty Conservation Institute Newsletter 20(1), 2005, pp. 11‐16 [15] http://revista.arp.org.pt/ (accessed 17‐10‐2011) [16] http://citar.artes.ucp.pt/ecr/ (accessed 17‐10‐2011) [17] http://revista.ge‐iic.com/ (accessed 17‐10‐2011) [18] E. Wetering, Rembrandt. The Painter at Work, University of California Press, Berkeley ‐ Los Angeles ‐ London, 2000
ANTÓNIO JOÃO CRUZ Conservation Scientist Contact: ajcruz@ipt.pt António João Cruz teaches conservation science at Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Tomar, Insti‐ tuto Politécnico de Tomar, Portugal and he is a researcher at CITAR – Centro de Investigação em Ciência e Tecnologia das Artes, Universidade Católica, Porto, Portugal. e‐conser vation
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HISTORIC CONSERVATION PROJECT BEGINS AT 'MACHU PICCHU OF THE NORTH' Global Heritage Fund & Unidad Ejecutivo Marcahaumachuco partner up to revive the Pre‐Inca City of the Dead
GHF has announced its newest conservation project at Marcahuamachuco, a site of Pre‐Incan ruins often referred to by archaeologists as “Machu Picchu of the North” and the “Jewel of La Liber‐ tad”. Marcahuamachuco is set atop the nexus of three mountain valleys at over 10,000 feet (3,200 meters), overlooking the land and rivers below. Celebrated for its massive castillos (castles) and unique circular double‐walled archaeological structures that predate the imperial expansion of the Incas and the Huari, Marcahuamachuco was constructed between 400‐800 AD and became northern Peru’s most important political, econo‐ mic and military center. Located at an altitude of approximately 3,200 meters, Marcahuamachuco is one of the largest and most complex archaeological sites in the northern highlands of Peru. With its massive walls and impressive stone architecture that predates the imperial expansion of the Incas and the Huari, the site has intrigued and attracted travelers and researchers since Colonial times. Its construction dates back to around 400 AD, and before being conquered by the Incas, it became northern Peru’s most important political, economic and military center. Over many centuries, it has been damaged by natural factors and a lack of surveillance, but it remains one of the country’s most important archaeological sites. Global Heritage Fund (GHF), an international conservancy dedicated to saving endangered heri‐ tage sites in developing countries, is launching this newest conservation project at a special event to be held in the city of Trujillo on November 14
Wall shoring at Marcahuamachuco.
2nd, 2011. Following this event, the GHF team will journey from Trujillo to Huamachuco, passing through the most important archaeological sites from Moche culture (predating the Incas) to Chimu culture, until they reach the site of Marcahuama‐ chuco. GHF’s technical expertise will support its local partner, the Unidad Ejecutora Marcahuamachuco (UEM), in scientific planning, GIS and mapping, and archaeological conservation. In addition, GHF’s Preservation by Design® methodology will be applied to community development to promote employment of local conservation workers, train‐ ing guides and artisan works to ensure long‐term sustainability. Since March 2011, the UEM has been performing emergency actions at the site, including clearing vegetation and provisionally repairing the most damaged walls in advance of large‐scale conservation. Currently, the UEM team includes 24 local workers from the town of Huamachuco. e‐conser vation
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Historic wall ruins at Marcahuamachuco. Photo by Johan Reinhard.
Alejandra Figueroa, who has worked on many archaeological missions across Peru, serves as project director for GHF Marcahuamachuco, and is working closely with the UEM to ensure the best preservation practices and community develop‐ ment. “The GHF project represents a unique oppor‐ tunity to use the latest technology to protect and preserve Marcahuamachuco, and to create a new management model in Peru combining public and private efforts to protect archaeological heritage”, said Figueroa. “My personal stake in the preservation of Marca‐ huamachuco is twofold: as an archaeologist, I want to see the site protected and prepared to survive for many generations. As a Peruvian citizen, I can‐ not ignore the many needs of my country’s popu‐ lation, and the desire for improving their quality of life. Marcahuamachuco has great potential to become a major tourist attraction, and also to strengthen the bond between people from Huama‐ chuco and their cultural heritage and Peru’s past e‐conser vation
— a process that hopefully will allow us to better understand our present and shape our future.” With excellent potential to become one of the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the northern high‐ lands of Peru, Marcahuamachuco will provide a major focus for economic development in an area with few opportunities for local communities. The heritage site of Marcahuamachuco is considered endangered and faces accelerating threats as the ruins degrade from grazing of livestock, lack of conservation, weathering, plant growth and the continued unchecked effects of natural elements on the ancient structures. Marcahuamachuco is GHF’s second project in Peru, joining Chavín de Huántar, a UNESCO World Heri‐ tage Site located in the high mountains of the Andes. Since 2004, GHF has been working in part‐ nership with Stanford University’s Dr. John Rick and the Instituto Nacional de Cultura (INC) to preserve Chavín. GHF’s multi‐stage methodology, 15
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View from Marcahuamachuco. Photo by Johan Reinhard.
West side of the Marcahuamachuco ruins. Photo by Johan Reinhard.
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e�conser vation
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called Preservation by Design®, has ensured Chavín de Huántar has the highest‐caliber science, planning and training for archaeological conser‐ vation and community development. “As our work at Chavín de Huántar has shown, GHF understands not only the need for responsible planning and development, but the sustainable economic potential of cultural heritage sites — not just in Peru, but in developing countries all over the world”, says Jeff Morgan, Executive Director of GHF. In 2010, GHF funded the cata‐ loging and conservation of thousands of Chavin artifacts which are now displayed in the new $4 million National Museum of Chavín and 60,000 people have already visited the site over the last year. Much of Marcahuamachuco's history still remains a mystery ‐ with the engagement of archaeolo‐ gists, historians and the local community, the project will shed light on this important Peruvian treasure. Like so many of the country’s top heri‐ tage sites, it has suffered in the shadow of Machu Picchu for too long.
FREE CONSERVATION RESOURCES
Art Conservation Research conservationresearch.blogspot.com
Visit GHF online and on Twitter to follow the trip to Marcahuamachuco @Global_Heritage. About Marcahuamachuco, Peru Visit Marcahuamachuco on the Global Heritage Network (GHN) About Chavin de Huantar, Peru
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CONSERVATION MATTERS IN WALES Review by Johanna Sandström 16 June 2011 Cardiff , United Kingdom
Organised by: National Museum Wales, The Federation of Museums and Art Galleries of Wales and Cardiff University
The conference “Conservation Matters in Wales” focused on the theme “Use and misuse of objects”. The event was organized by National Museum Wales, The Federation of Museums and Art Galleries of Wales and Cardiff University, and was held at the Icon suite of the Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales on the 16th of June 2011.
need improving, with feedback on how to improve. The program is accessed via http://www.rapton line.org.uk, and registration is mandatory to complete the test. Jane was the first to mention that the main risk for most organizations in the cultural heritage sector is a lack of funding, some‐ thing that was to come up as a subject in most of the following talks.
Speakers from different parts of Wales and England presented their thoughts about ethics and decision‐ making in relation to the conference theme, focu‐ sing mainly on the state of the actual economic situation and how it causes problems for conserva‐ tors. This conference offered many interesting insights into how conservators in Britain have worked to deal with these problems. The first speaker was Jane Thomson Webb from Birmingham Museums and Art Galleries. She spoke about Risk, and a program called RAPT, short for Risk Awareness Profiling Tool. It is a free online tool, developed by Birmingham Museums and Art galleries and The Museum of London in co‐opera‐ tion with risk expert Jonathan Ashley‐Smith, designed to help museums and other organiza‐ tions dealing with cultural heritage to assess their risk‐awareness. It is a program where one answers questions in different steps, with the possibility to gain further information on the questions along the way, and in the end get to know in which areas their risk awareness plans are good and where they 18
The second speaker was Paul Meredith, engineer at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales. His talk focused on the importance of knowing the technology and engineering of machinery one works with in a museum environment, if you are to have it running and at the same time keeping damage to a minimum. He stated how the know‐ ledge of old, outdated machinery is something that is becoming forgotten in a period of rapid tempo. This knowledge is often lost with the people who used to operate the machines. He stressed how it is important for engineers/con‐ servators of old machinery to gather as much information as possible about the machines they work with from the people who ran it before them, and also to write it down for future reference and make use of it in their everyday work. He described how he made up check‐lists for the machines in his care, of which parts needed to be under regular surveillance when they were run and not run. He described how a routine of checking these points is essential to preserve the machinery, and also e‐conser vation
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to ensure safety for operators and audience who are spending time close to the machine. The third speaker was Katie Hebborn, graduating student at Cardiff University BSc Conservation of Objects in Museums and Archaeology. She presen‐ ted her third‐year practical project, analyzing the original paint in the ceiling of the Tabernacle Chapel of Pontypridd, which was first painted in 1910 and then re‐painted in 1983, example of the 1980’s paint (Figure 1). The purpose of her work was to analyze the original paint to give Ponty‐ pridd art‐society an idea of how the ceiling was originally painted so they could then use the infor‐ mation to make a reconstruction of what it looked like in 1910, and then possibly repaint the roof. Having some knowledge of the colours originally used, Duresco paint, Katie made exposure windows at vital parts of the patterns in the ceiling to un‐ cover the original paint and take samples for colour analysis. She analyzed the original paint in a labo‐ ratory using cross‐section microscopy and SEM‐ EDX technology. She made a guideline for the art‐ society after the Munsell book of colours, descri‐ bing hue, value and chroma of the paint. She ended her presentation with reasoning around the theme of use and misuse of objects, stating that to us the misuse in this case is surely that the ceil‐ ing was repainted in 1983, while in the future we do not know if it would be considered a misuse to restore the ceiling to its original state at the expense of the 1980’s art‐work. The fourth speaker, Clare Stoughton Harris of the National Trust talked about the buildings in the care of the National Trust and how the greatest threat to these properties is the lack of funding within the organization. She also spoke of how to deal with the ever flowing stream of tourists, and how one can go about to calculate maximum sus‐ tainable amount of visitors for a given time in a historical building without interfering too much e‐conser vation
Figure 1. 1980’s paint in the ceiling Tabernacle Chapel of Pontypridd. Photo by Katie Hebborn.
with the conservation and preservation work. A stable relationship between letting the visitors enjoy themselves in the cultural property without interfering with the conservation of the same property was their main goal. To cope with the funding allocation she described how the National Trust has worked out check‐lists for conservation and preventive conservation of the buildings in their care. These checklists describe what the most urgent concerns are allowing a focus on them. A check list could include, for example, the number of rooms in a building, what pests that are present in the building, what protected species there are that need to be taken into consideration, hazard‐ ous materials in the constructions, etc. For each there are guidelines of what needed to be done, priority lists and routines for the care of the building. Her thoughts on the theme of use and misuse of objects: she defined misuse as being the use of an object without risk awareness or use disregarding risk awareness. The fifth speaker, Laura Caradonna of Monmouth‐ shire Museum Service, had evaluated the use of polyester pockets for storing documents and went 19
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Figure 2. One of the Nelson Letters. Photo by Laura Caradonna.
Figure 3. The current way of storing Nelson’s letters, in polyester pockets in conservation boxes. Photo by Laura Caradonna.
through the pros and cons for conservation pur‐ poses and for some other options for storage. The Monmouthshire Museum holds in their care the personal correspondence of Admiral Horatio Nelson together with other artifacts associated with him such as swords, ship models and log books. This presentation focused on the conserva‐ tion and storage of his letters (Figure 2), written with iron gall ink, folded and sealed with shellac, later flattened and bound, and at the time of the presentation stored in polyester pockets in conser‐ vation boxes (Figure 3). Laura listed the pros of polyester pockets as being inexpensive and space‐ saving, and making both sides of letters accessible. The cons were the risk to damage the letter during extraction, the creation of a microclimate inside the pockets, and that they create electrostatic attracting dust and as such speeding up degrada‐ tion. The options for re‐housing the letters were putting them in four‐flap folders, or so called Ephemera rehousing; putting them in a ring bin‐ der, then in conservation boxes, or wrapping them in manila folders using polyester sheet, also giving the addition of a carrier in the pocket. The last suggestion was to create enhanced breathing in the polyester pockets by piercing the folder to allow air movement. The problem for the museum is that there is not enough storage‐space for other options, and also a concern that adding buffering
in the folders might lead to problems with corro‐ sion in the iron gall ink.
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The sixth speaker was David Lewis, a furniture restorer who spoke about his experiences through his career, mainly concerning the ethical issues he has faced and still faces in his every‐day work. Not being a conservator he does not fall under the ethical guidelines of any conservation organiza‐ tion, so he has to base his decisions from only his own ethical standpoints. In some cases the wishes of the customer clashes with these standpoints, and the only way to handle that is to either con‐ vince the customer to rethink their decisions, or to carry out their wishes causing the least possible damage to the original integrity of the object. As a restorer it is also out of his control to govern the environment where the piece of furniture ends up after his work has been carried out. As an example to illustrate what he sometimes faces in his work, he told a story about a customer who asked him to make an antique chest of drawers into a wine‐ cooler. While he did not want to do this he also realized that this customer would have the work carried out, and if not by him then by somebody else, who would quite possible, do a worse job. So despite the obvious ethical issues, he took the job and turned the piece into a wine‐cooler, while keeping its original surface appearance to the e‐conser vation
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best of his ability. He said that his main tasks as a restorer, apart from general repairs or an occa‐ sional strange request, is usually to either remake the original look of a piece of furniture, and to redo or undo bad craftsmanship. When working with antiquities he stated that the best way to carry out his job was to consult a conservator to establish least harmful treatment. The last speaker was Caroline Buttler of Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, former conser‐ vator and now working with natural history type specimens. Her talk treated the subject of how she felt was the right way to use the irreplaceable collections in her care. Natural history type speci‐ mens are the bearers of the scientific names of all animal taxa, after the Linnean binominal system. A type specimen is the one specimen that defines a species, and it is important to have as compa‐ rison if someone believes they have discovered a new species, to conclude that it is not in fact an existing one. The single type specimen is called the holotype, and it is the one specimen that defines the whole species. These are the most scientifically valuable parts of museum collections and it is important for researchers to know where to find these specimens. So, how are they to be used causing the least possible damage? For scien‐ tific research for example, paratypes should be used as far as possible. Paratypes are secondary examples of the species and more examples than the one holotype exist. These samples sometimes need to undergo a harmful procedure in scientific research such as when accessing DNA data. She raised the question especially concerning fossils, where methods exist to gather a lot of informa‐ tion, but often at the expense of the sample itself. Should she cut up fossils to see what it looks like inside and thereby classify species? There are techniques for creating virtual 3D images that creates virtual holotypes but this requires the destruction of the original specimen. When a e‐conser vation
sample is destroyed, casts of the original speci‐ men should be made as far as it is possible. When it comes to old and new samples the scientific value is the same, but there is a historical value to some prepared holotypes and paratypes such as the samples that were prepared by Darwin. Some of them are in bad shape and of little scientific value since the DNA data has been destroyed, but they still possess a historical value and are considered worth preserving since they can be connected to such an important scientist as Darwin. This was an interesting day where the delegates were given inputs from many different parts of the conservation profession, got a view on how use and misuse of objects can manifest itself, and how there are many risks concerning our cultural heritage, and the main one right now is a lack of funding for carrying out conservation work.
JOHANNA SANDSTRÖM Conservator‐restorer Johanna moved from Uppsala, Sweden to Cardiff, UK, in September 2010 to study BSc Conservation of Objects in Museums and Archaeology at Cardiff University. In the summer of 2011 she did four weeks of vacation placement at the Swedish Natio‐ nal Heritage Board and is now in her second year, looking very much forward to continue her career in conservation. 21
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MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS APPLICATIONS IN CULTURAL HERITAGE RESEARCH Review by Ana Bidarra
7‐11 August 2011, Nashville, Tennessee, USA Organised by: Microscopy Society of America (MSA)
The scientific session on 'Microscopy and Micro‐ analysis Applications in Cultural Heritage Research' was held during the 8th and 9th of August in an afternoon and morning conferences. This session was a very small part of an annual meeting orga‐ nized by the Microscopy Society of America (MSA), the Microanalysis Society (MAS) and the Interna‐ tional Metallographic Society (IMS). The sympo‐ sium chairs were John Mansfield (University of Michigan), Ed Vicenzi (Museum Conservation Institute, Smithsonian Institution) and Cathy Selvius DeRoo (The Detroit Institute of Arts). The M&M conference is a meeting that spans the physical, life and analytical sciences, bringing together delegates from around the globe repor‐ ting on the latest work and advances in microscopy and microanalysis. The conference was organized in over 30 symposia reflecting the current state‐ of‐the‐art, as well as the innovative and emerging fields of research were held, focusing in areas such as nanotechnology, traditional metallurgy, biology or clinical diagnosis, or the growing field of multifunctional hard/soft materials. Comple‐ menting the symposia was an exhibition of micros‐ copy/microanalysis instrumentation and resources, which included access to vendor tutorials. 22
The “Microscopy and Microanalysis Applications in Cultural Heritage Research” was held under the Physical Science symposia. The first day comprised six presentations. The first one, “Non‐destructive investigation of Pre‐Columbian goldwork from Panama with Variable Pressure Scanning Electron Microscopy” was presented by the invited speaker Ainslie Harrison from the National Museum of the American Indian (Smithsonian Institution, USA). Goldworking technology spread to Panama from neighbouring regions in the first centuries AD; however, not all metalworking techniques were adopted and many stylistic and technological variations were developed locally. Almost all of the 318 objects examined in this study were fabricated from Au‐Ag‐Cu alloys and included pendants, plaques, nose rings, finger rings, ear rods, bands, cuffs, sheathing, beads, and tools. Optical microscopy alone was capable of providing a great deal of technological information such as primary fabrication method (e.g. cast vs. ham‐ mered), as well as some joining and finishing techniques. Examination of every object in the study was therefore carried out under the stereo‐ microscope while evidence of manufacture was recorded with photomicrographs and entered into the project database. In cases where the methods e‐conser vation
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of fabrication and joining remained unclear from examination under the microscope, objects were selected to undergo VP‐SEM‐EDS. As only non‐ destructive analysis was permitted on the Smith‐ sonian material, this technique was ideal to help answer research questions not resolved with optical microscopy or XRF. The second presentation, by Jose Luis Ruvalcaba‐ Sil (Instituto de Física, UNAM, Mexico), was also on the study of gold and was entitled “Combining SEM‐EDS, PIXE and XRF techniques for complex analytical problems: depth profile characterization of Pre‐Hispanic gold”. Technological characteri‐ zation of Pre‐Hispanic gold metallurgy has a wide deficit of analytical data upon which to build a synthesis, comparable to that made for ancient Europe. This study tries to fill the gap between the well established stylistic classifications and the scientific identification of the production pro‐ cesses, focusing on the tumbaga alloys, lost wax technological processes and depletion gilding. The third contribution was my own presentation (University of Aveiro, Portugal) and focused on the study of gold leaf from Portuguese Baroque altar‐ pieces. Despite the existence of several works on the study of this art form, they are mainly related to treatises and orders from the manufacturing period or to art history relations. This study, however, aimed to provide a new approach to the analysis of this architectural art by studying not only these aspects but also the gold leaf, in order to identify a distinct fingerprint for each altar‐ piece. The gold provenance relations, circulation, compositional and textural aspects – structure and micro structural – are some of the factors considered. The presentation “Technology and trade at Ancient Gordion: insights from microanalysis of first millennium BCE glass” was brought by the second e‐conser vation
invited speaker Karen Privat (Electron Microscope Unit, University of New South Wales, Kensington, Australia). In the first half of the first millennium BCE, the ancient city of Gordion, in central Ana‐ tolia, was the capital of the kingdom of Phrygia. Still famous as the home of King Midas, Gordion was located on major east‐west trade routes and arterial rivers, and provided a link between sur‐ rounding Near Eastern states and between these states and the Greek world further to the west. Excavations at Gordion have yielded a number of monochrome glass objects, mainly vessels, from the Phrygian period (Iron Age, 9th‐7th c. BCE) and later Hellenistic period (mid‐4th to early 2nd c. BC). A set of 51 glass samples from Phrygian, Hellenistic and undated contexts at Gordion were examined in order to establish similarities and differences among glass of the two periods and to investigate broader technological and economic relationships between Phrygian and Hellenistic Gordion and its neighbours. The final presentations were from two MAS Distin‐ guished Scholar Awards, Susana Coentro and Alessandro Re. These awards are offered annually to full‐time students presenting high quality technical papers with significant microanalysis content. The award comprised complimentary registration and funds to defray travel expenses to attend the meeting. Susana Coentro (VICARTE: Vidro e Cerâmica para as Artes, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Uni‐ versidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal) presented “The colours and techniques of 17th century Portuguese azulejos: a multi‐analytical study”. In the 17th century, Portuguese azulejo manufac‐ ture was already well established and widespread. The tiles were produced by the majolica technique and had a relatively rich palette which included blue, green, yellow, orange and a set of tones ranging from purple to dark brown. This work is 23
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focused on the identification of the pigments and pigment mixtures and also on the morphology of colour in the lead‐tin glaze. A multi‐analytical approach was used, with preference for the non‐ destructive techniques. The second awarded scholar, Alessandro Re (Dipartimento di Fisica Sperimentale, Università di Torino and INFN, Italy), spoke on the use of SEM‐EDX and SEM‐CL to characterize lapis lazuli from different provenances. Lapis lazuli has been used for more than 7000 years for the manufacture of precious objects and jewels. The main quarries for this stone are still active in Afghanistan, but there are other quarries that could have been exploited since antiquity in the Pamir Mountains (Tajikistan), in Pakistan and in Siberia. For this reason a provenance study of lapis lazuli could provide answers to some important issues, in particular the use and the dissemination of this rock through historic commercial routes. During the investigation a systematic study has been performed on lapis lazuli from different quarries using Energy Dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDX) and cathodoluminescence (CL). The aim of this characterization is to identify the main phases present in the stone and to find some markers to distinguish among provenances. The poster session followed the end of the first session of platform presentations and was held at the exhibit hall. The second and last day of presentations started with two invited speakers: Patrick Ravines (Art Conservation Department, SUNY Buffalo State, New York, USA) and Joris Dik (Department of Materials Science, Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands). The first presentation “Surface characterization of 19th century and modern daguerreotypes using High‐Resolution SEM” focused on the study of 19th century and recent 24
Nashville Convention Center.
modern daguerreotypes using HR‐SEM with mag‐ nifications ranging from 20,000x to 250,000x. The surface characterization study corroborates the metallurgical nature of the silver mercury amalgam image particles and demonstrated the nano‐textured nature of the background and image particle surface. The nano‐texture features of the background surface in the studied gilded plates provided information that potentially explains the occurrence of tarnish as corrosion in the inter‐nodular regions. It appears that gold is not continuous and may only be capping silver nodules that range in size in the tens of nanome‐ ters. The narrower nodule boundary regions show tarnish cubic crystals of AgCl and/or Ag2O infer‐ ring that a protective gold layer is not present and that silver metal is exposed to atmospheric conta‐ minants, thereby allowing tarnish to develop. In “The Skin of Van Gogh's Paintings”, by Joris Dik, the focus was on the degradation mechanism of early modern painting pigments used in the work of Vincent van Gogh. These included pigments such as cadmium yellow and lead chromate yellow. Recent studies of these pigments have revealed e‐conser vation
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stability problems. Cadmium yellow, or cadmium sulphide, may suffer from photo‐oxidation at the utmost surface of the paint film, resulting in the formation of colourless cadmium sulphate hydra‐ tes. Lead chromate, on the other hand, can be subject to a reduction process, yielding green chrome oxide at the visible surface. Such effects can seriously disfigure the original appearance of Van Gogh's works, as it was shown by a number of case studies. The first two presentations of the morning were on the “The use of X‐ray mapping to investigate art works before their restoration” and on “Micro‐ computed tomography applied to museum collections”. Conservation involves the restoration and preser‐ vation of museum objects and historical monu‐ ments using compositional and structural informa‐ tion obtained from modern analytical techniques. The conservation of oil paintings requires an under‐ standing of the individual structure of each work of art. This often involves the need for correct identification of the pigments used by the artist, a detailed knowledge of the chemical interactions between these pigments and an understanding of the artist’s method of mixing colours and laying paint on canvas. These were the basis for Richard Wuhrer (Microstructural Analysis Unit, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia) presentation that brought examples of the study of different works of art prior to restoration ‐ Claude Monet “Port‐ Goulphar, Belle Îlle” (1887), John Russell “Mon ami Polite” (1900) and Philips Fox “Summer” (1912). Invited speaker Alexander Ball (Electron Micros‐ cope Unit, Department of Mineralogy, The Natural History Museum, London, UK) ended the first part of the morning with a presentation on micro‐ computed tomography (micro‐CT) applied to the study of natural history collections. The ability to e‐conser vation
create virtual models using micro‐CT allows very precise control over lighting and this was used to examine flint stone tools and to determine how they were knapped. Virtual specimens can also be manipulated digitally – either through cross‐ sections, segmentation or rendering to produce detailed dissections for comparison to published data. This avoids the need for destructive sampling. Alternatively, the data can be used to create movies and specimens can be reproduced using stereolithography and experimentally tested. John Mansfield (North Campus Electron Micro‐ beam Analysis Laboratory, University of Michigan, USA) started the second part of the morning ses‐ sion with a presentation entitled “SEM and XEDS Analysis of Paint Layers on a 1907 Model G White Steam Touring Car from The Henry Ford Museum Collection”. The selection of this car was of parti‐ cular interest to the museum’s conservators since it was believed that, unlike most of the automo‐ biles in the collection from this era, the painted surface on this touring car is original. The muse‐ um’s founder, Henry Ford, did not hesitate to restore damaged components and had every resource at his disposal to repaint and re‐make parts. Many cars were also restored before coming to the museum. The fact that this specimen was not heavily restored is important, since the car is from an era where the early automobile paint pro‐ cesses were being derived from the coach builders’ craft. The early painting methods applied to auto‐ mobile bodywork were rarely documented and transmission of the techniques was typically from an experienced master of the trade to apprentices. The sequence of primers, undercoats and finish coats is of interest in the attempts to conserve the car and its appearance without seriously changing the original materials. The invited speaker Andrew Lins (Conservation Department, Philadelphia Museum of Art, USA) 25
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spoke on the “Materials evaluation and monito‐ ring of a large‐scale conservation project: eight monumental sculptures by A. M. Calder”. The presentation described the process involved in the repair and stabilization of eight monumental bronze sculptures situated on the massive clock tower of Philadelphia City Hall, some 107 metres above ground level with very limited access. Crea‐ ted by A. M. Calder and installed between 1894 and 1896, the sculptures comprise four figural groups (each averaging ~5 metres high and weighting 6,35 tons) and four eagles (each with a wingspan ~3,5 metres and weighing 3,18 tons). The sculptures were comprised of sand‐cast, flanged sections that were bolted together with ferrous fasteners. Beyond the structural neces‐ sity of replacing the ferrous fasteners with ~2200 silicon or stainless steel fasteners, the two basic questions for the eight sculptures in this conser‐ vation program were: “What were the safest, low‐ est risk, affordable cleaning and coating proce‐ dures that could be applied with predictable lon‐ gevity exceeding ten years?” and “How easily could the sculptures be maintained to create the longest interval between retreatment, thereby reducing long‐term costs to the City for preservation?” Compositional analysis of corroded materials often provides information about the corrosion process and can assist with the selection of solvents for cleaning and restoration. This was the purpose of Amy Hemmati (National Institute of Standards and Technology, Surface and Microanalysis Science Division, USA) study on Rodin’s Eve. An X‐ray microanalysis based study was conducted to deter‐ mine the composition of particles taken from the surface of the bronze statue displayed outdoors. The final presentation was from the invited speaker Nahoko Sugioka (Graduate School of Cultural Conservation, Tokyo University of the Arts, Japan) on the “Microstructure of woollen fibre dyed by 26
PbCrO4 yellow dyeing technique imported into Japan in the middle of the 19th century”. A cotton fabric called Touzan, having a vertically striped pattern, was imported into Japan from Southeast Asian countries during the 15th to the 19th centu‐ ries. However the use of a chrome‐yellow dyeing technique was only applied for the yellow thread in the Touzan fabric imported in the late 19th cen‐ tury. It is thought that the conventional plant‐ based yellow dye for the thread in Touzan fabric was replaced with artificial dye, such as chrome‐ yellow, developed in Europe. Then, the dyeing technique was brought into Japan, perhaps in the middle of the 19th century and was utilized to make the cotton fabric called domestic‐Touzan. Although this two day session had some very inte‐ resting presentations that covered a series of different approaches to the use of microscopic and micro analytical techniques in cultural heri‐ tage and a significant participation of speakers from outside the USA, the organizers were not convinced of the need to proceed with this specific topic within the following M&M symposia. This was the first and probably the last time that the “Microscopy and Microanalysis Applications in Cultural Heritage Research” was held, since the next M&M meeting (2012) in Phoenix (USA) will not contemplate this area of investigation.
ANA BIDARRA Conservator‐restorer Contact: bidarra.ana@gmail.com Ana Bidarra has a Degree in Conservation‐Resto‐ ration and a Master Degree in GeoSciences on white structured pigments for restoration. Cur‐ rently she is a PhD candidate researching the com‐ positional and technological aspects of gold leaf from Portuguese baroque altarpieces. She works as conservator‐restorer in private practice since 1999. e‐conser vation
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MATCONS 2011 MATTER AND MATERIALS IN/FOR HERITAGE CONSERVATION Review by Teodora Poiata
24‐28 August 2011 Craiova, Romania Organised by: Dolj County Council, Oltenia Museum in Craiova, ICOM Romania and University of Craiova
The second edition of MATCONS, a conference dedi‐ cated to the Conservation and Restoration of Cul‐ tural Heritage, took place last August in Craiova, Romania. This event aimed to bring together an international community focusing on scientific research and its applications to conservation prac‐ tice. It was an interesting event to take part of, with a rich programme concentrated into 3 days of lectures followed by 2 days of thematic field trips. Around 50 presentations by speakers from 17 countries were given during these days, organised in parallel sessions that included key lectures, oral presentations, a seminar, a training course, and a round table on education and training issues. Among other activities of the conference were poster sessions, a national exhibition of restora‐ tion and awards for the best master and doctoral thesis on conservation science. The first day started with the opening ceremony held at University of Craiova’s conference hall. A welcoming message was addressed by Elena Badea from the University of Turin as part of the local scientific programme committee. Invited speakers were cultural officials involved in the organisation of the event. A foray into the history of the resto‐ ration laboratories in Dolj County showed that e‐conser vation
the economic and politic climate have a strong impact on cultural heritage, which reflects on various levels from the rehabilitation of buildings and funding for equipment to organization of events such as MATCONS. The crisis that Romania is currently confronting has serious consequences upon museums and has brought a few of their con‐ servation laboratories to close during the last years. On a positive note, the laboratory of the Oltenia Museum in Craiova, established in 1975, succeeded to overcome these problems and opera‐ tes today in five main areas in their new facilities. The first session was a seminar dedicated to “Sci‐ ence and Art” and featured three presentations by renowned speakers: Nicolae Panea from the University of Craiova – “Postmodernism, culture, popular culture and technical support”; Ioan Opris from the National Museum of History in Bucharest – “About chemistry, chemists and cultural herita‐ ge”; and Luigi Dei from the University of Florence – “Primo Levi’s lesson: a bridge between chemistry and literature”. Professor Dei’s impressive presen‐ tation was built on the story “Cerium” by Primo Levi from the book “The Periodic Table”, a wonder‐ ful story showing how knowledge can be the rea‐ son for survival. The story takes place back in 1944 27
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Opening ceremony ‐ invited speakers were Mihai Fifor, director of Oltenia Museum, Ioan Opris, professor and historian from the National Museum of History in Bucharest, Cristinel Iovan from the Dolj County Council, Nicolae Panea and Daniela Tarnita from the University of Craiova and Virgil Stefan Nitulescu, president of ICOM Romania.
at the concentration camp of Auschwitz where the author, an Italian Jewish chemist, spent a year as prisoner struggling to survive. It was a very touching story that raised a question ‐ how far are chemistry and literature one from the other? The answer ‐ the bridge ‐ was Culture. A video of this same presentation is available online here. Afterwards, the opening plenary session was given by Gustavo Brunetti who presented “Open European Facilities for the Study and Conservation of Artworks: the CHARISMA Program”. The spea‐ ker presented an overview of the objectives and work alredy developed of CHARISMA, which is a EU‐funded project that provides access to analy‐ tical equipment and know‐how to cultural heri‐ tage researchers. Next followed two parallel sessions: a training course organized in association with iCON (“Sci‐ ence and Cultural Heritage in Connection”) on various applications of thermal analysis to cultu‐ ral heritage, and a session dedicated to case stu‐ dies and research carried out in various centers and laboratories of Romanian museums. 28
A very interesting intervention was “Museums and Politics” by David Fleming, who gave an in‐ sight into cost effective museum management based on his extensive experience as Director of National Museums Liverpool. His advice on how to make museums work was given in a very direct and practical way: if politicians do not speak museums language, then museums must learn to speak the language of politicians. Education came in as a very important factor in this equa‐ tion; it is seen as the main function of a museum by the public, so it must offer interesting activi‐ ties and know how to engage it. People are able to stand for their museums and their voices are heard by politicians, hence this will attract their support and provide funding for educational pur‐ poses. Hopefully his advice has proved to be an inspiration to many of the museums representa‐ tives in Romania. The afternoon continued with another two parallel sessions: a round table on education and training in conservation‐restoration and a session dedicated to more case studies of conservation treatments carried out in Romania. e‐conser vation
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includes detailed written and photographic docu‐ mentation of the collection.
A view of the conference posters exhibited in the main hall of the University of Craiova.
An interesting case study was presented by Olim‐ pia Coman‐Sipeanu regarding the impressive col‐ lection of icons on glass “Cornel Irimie” acquired by the Astra Museum in Sibiu. The author gave a detailed presentation of the collection manage‐ ment and the conservation methodology for these 64 icons during the course of a treatment that has started almost 20 years ago. This great work finalized with the publication of a catalogue that
The second day started with a plenary session ope‐ ned by Gerhard Eggert, conservator at the State Academy of Art and Design in Stuttgart, with “Endangered neighbour: how corroding glass causes contact corrosion on metals”. This was a well documented presentation that focused on a very specific degradation form which is often ignored: the corrosion induced by the contact between copper alloys and historic glass. Once the chemical process was explained, several examples of artefacts affected by this pheno‐ menon were given as well as advice on the best preservation practices. The session continued with two other interesting presentations: Wilfried Vetter spoke about Non‐ invasive material analysis in art and archaeology, trends and perspectives. His work was carried out together with Manfred Schreiner at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and included the develop‐ ment of a transportable x‐ray fluorescence (XRF) equipment for in‐situ applications in archaeolo‐ gical sites, museums and libraries. Other methods
Round table – chairpersons Matija Strlič, Hannelore Roemich and Patricia Engel.
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Hans Christoph von Imhoff presenting the conservation case study of the painting “Sanctus Beatus" (1657) by Claude Fréchot.
Roberto Padoan presenting “Quantitative hyperspectral imaging as a conservation tool in archives and libraries”.
of non‐invasive analysis such as a novel external reflection‐FTIR equipment and a spectrometer for fibre optic reflection‐UV‐Vis analysis were also experimented at the Academy with promising results.
Coupled with multivariate data analysis (MVA) this examination technique becomes especially useful for characterisation of organic materials. It also has the capability to give information on chemical properties of an object, such as acidity or molecular weight, which allows conservators to visualise the degradation of an object. Its application to modelling of material stability makes it a valuable tool for assessing risks of collections.
Luigi Dei closed the session with a fascinating application of science to conservation – nano‐ technology. Its applications to frescoes, historic buildings and panel paintings are revolutionary in conservation. The author presented recent advances in the research carried out at University of Florence on nanomaterials chemistry, which make possible delicate procedures such as conso‐ lidation of severely detached paint layers and selective cleaning. Throughout the day some other interesting inter‐ ventions were made. On the same topic of non‐ destructive analytical characterisation of works of art, Matija Strlič from University College London presented “Modelling the past and the future and visualisation of the present: NIR Spectroscopy for Cultural Heritage”. Near Infrared spectroscopy is a relatively new tool new tool in art conservation. 30
On a different note, the presentation of Hans Christoph von Imhoff, conservator in private practice, introduced the audience to an interes‐ ting case study – the conservation of the painting “Sanctus Beatus (1657) by Claude Fréchot, part of a larger ensemble made of 34 paintings from the cathedral Saint Nicholas in Fribourg, Switzerland. The author discussed interesting aspects that he observed during the conservation treatment regar‐ ding the technological process of the artwork, from the preparation and mounting of the wood panels to finer details such as the preparatory drawing and the brushstrokes.
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Calopareanu Silvia‐Coralia, nun Mina from Bistrita Monastery, speaking about traditional techniques applied to new items.
A view from the National Exhibition of Restoration at Museum of Oltenia.
The presentation of Oliviu Boldura, professor at the National Art University in Bucharest and co‐ founder of the association Art Conservation Sup‐ port, was an impressive summary of a lifetime conservation experience and research carried out on important monuments with exterior painting from the north of Moldavia. During his interven‐ tions of conservation‐restoration he has confron‐ ted with different alteration phenomena of pig‐ ments such as azurite, malachite or cinnabar, which he has studied and interpreted based on the scientific research carried out by chemist Ioan Istudor. The chemical processes that took place are explained in the context of the contribu‐ ting environmental factors based on the in‐situ observations of the conservator‐restorer. Once again it was proved how valuable interdisciplina‐ rity is and the close connection between science and conservation.
On the last day of the conference the presenta‐ tions continued to bring interesting topics into the discussion. In the morning were presented case studies of book and paper conservation and preservation of wood and leather heritage objects. The afternoon was dedicated to more scientific research, this time with application on icons and oil paintings. Two other analytical techniques were presented: Optical Coherence Tomography, by Adrian Podoleanu, and Quantitative Hyperspectral Imaging (QHSI), by Roberto Padoan. This last pre‐ sentation discussed an interesting project carried out at the Nationaal Archief (National Archives of the Netherlands) that had the objective to develop dedicated instrumentation and explore the appli‐ cations of QHSI technique to archives and libraries. Compared to conventional multi‐spectral imaging, QHSI provides a much greater number of spectral bands which allows to discriminate between diffe‐ rent types of degradation processes. For monito‐ ring archival documents, measurements were recorded before and after the documents were on exhibit or storage for long periods of time. One of the main goals of the project is to establish a standard monitoring technique which would
The day ended with a visit to the Museum of Oltenia for the opening of the National Exhibition of Restoration and a concert at Oltenia Philhar‐ monic House as part of the social events offered by the organisers. e‐conser vation
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Visit at Polovragi Monastery.
improve the accuracy of the condition documen‐ tation and assist conservators in developing more effective preventive conservation procedures. The last session of the day was dedicated to the awards for the best master and doctoral thesis on conservation science. The first was awarded to Hyoyun Kim for her Master thesis “A comparative study of the colour change of dyed and pigmented epoxy resins used in glass conservation with the particular focus on their application in the conser‐ vation of the Hwangnamdeachong Korean glass ewer”. The prize for the best PhD thesis went to Dragos‐Valentin Ene with “Non‐contact optical methods for monitoring monuments conservation status”. The conference continued for more two days with field trips to representative monuments for Oltenia region: Hurezi Monastery, two fortified 32
boyar houses, Duca and Greceanu, and Polovragi, Brancoveni and Clocociov Monasteries. All papers presented at the conference will be published in the Conference Proceedings.
TEODORA POIATA Conservator‐restorer Contact: teodora.poiata@e‐conservationline.com Teodora Poiata is a mural paintings conservator. She received her BA in 2002 and her MA degree in 2005 from the National Art University in Bucharest. Currently she is involved in different conservation projects dividing her time between Romania and Portugal. She is one of the founders of Art Conserva‐ tion Support, association that supports cultural heritage conservation in Romania and of e‐conser‐ vation magazine where she is editor since 2007. e‐conser vation
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ICOM‐CC 16TH TRIENNIAL CONFERENCE Review by Rui Bordalo
19‐23 September 2011, Lisbon, Portugal Organised by: International Committee of ICOM ‐ The Committee for Conservation
The ICOM‐CC 16th Triennial Conference took place in Lisbon, Portugal from 19 to 23, September 2011, at the Lisbon Congress Centre. Its theme was “Cul‐ tural Heritage/Cultural Identity – The Role of Conservation”. Lisbon, a very nice historical city to visit, has greatly contributed to the conference success, and it was a luck that it was going through a late summer period, with nice warm weather. If the conference had to be summarised in one single word, that would be ‘massive’: five days, five rooms with parallel sessions, 21 group ses‐ sions, over 250 presentations, and I estimated a number of over 800 participants. Contrary to con‐ ferences spent in a single room, parallel sessions enable participants to make their own conference ‘à la carte’, allowing them to choose the most relevant presentations according to their interests. In fact, the organization anticipated this and in the first day we were presented with a handy pocket guide of all the presentations and rooms. However, the advantage of parallel sessions was counterbalanced by the fact I probably missed many interesting presentations because there were too many options at the same time. To change from one room to the other was also part of the experience, although an exhausting one. It was curious to see the corridors always full with parti‐ cipants in rush to catch the next presentation. Fortunately, we have the conference preprints, e‐conser vation
which this year were distributed in electronic format. As the conference took place in Portugal, I sus‐ pected I would find the event full of Portuguese attendees, always eager to participate in conser‐ vation events, although it was not so. Perhaps it was due to the current crisis the country under‐ goes or due to many other conferences that were happening in Lisbon at the same time. September was indeed a full month in Lisbon. The conference itself only started on the after‐ noon of the first day, Monday. The morning was reserved for the Opening Session and the first part of the General Assembly. The second part took place on Friday afternoon, just before the closing ceremony. The third day, Wednesday, was reserved for the plenary session (morning) and technical visits (afternoon). The conference pre‐ sentations were organised in 21 group sessions distributed in the rest of the days. On Monday afternoon there were presentations of five groups although my interest was focused on two, preventive conservation and paintings. The first presentation I saw was one of the most interesting as well. It was given by Jane Hender‐ son who spoke about decision‐making in conser‐ vation. In her presentation she referred that con‐ 33
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Anne Cummings presenting "Developing a computer‐based management system for monitoring change to Inside Australia (Antony Gormley, 2003)".
servators generally use a ‘rational’ system of weighting the options’ benefits and costs. How‐ ever, conservators do not always have all the infor‐ mation to make these decisions which led her to propose an heuristic approach to the decision‐ making process, enabling thus conservators to make an educated decision even when not all the data required is available. On Tuesday I found the Documentation presenta‐ tions particularly interesting. The session started with a presentation given by Austin Nevin and Aviva Burnstock who presented a case study where they used off‐the‐shelf open source software to develop an online platform. The website allowed different participants from a research project to contribute online with their research, insights and comments, allowing thus an easy way of communication. This is the sort of thing that can be made anywhere, at low cost and with a huge impact.
34
Later on, there was one of my favourite presenta‐ tions, given by Ruven Pillay from Centre de recher‐ che et de restauration des musées de France. I could not find the reference to his presentation in the preprints nor the book of abstracts but I really would like to read it. It was the last presen‐ tation of the Documentation group on Tuesday and it was an overview of the history and potential that digital imaging has on the conservation field. Several examples were given and a number of open source software were mentioned. It is my impression that many conservators still do not grasp the real potential of this technology. It often does not require any other investment other than time and interest as it implies using equipment and software already available. This leads me to observe a striking lack of digital applications during the conference, at least com‐ pared to what I was expecting. Most presenta‐ tions that touched on this subject were focused on the development of a series of databases for e‐conser vation
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Sanjay Dhar presenting "Temple of the Oracle Dorje Chenmo at Shey (Ladakh, India). Developing methodology for the conservation of living religious and cultural sites".
Andrew Thorn presenting "Cultural stability in an unstable environment: the waka of Te ana a maru".
some specific end but the thematic of digital imaging in particular was a huge absence in my opinion. Even more because everything is turning digital nowadays and because of its huge applica‐ tion potential.
only because of the original way he presented but also because of the subject of his work. His lecture was on “Surface micro‐roughness, cleaning, and perception”. Scientifically we can quantify things that the eye can not see. The use of profilometry to measure surface roughness is one of such appli‐ cations and it was discussed the limits of human perception and the importance for conservation of such small changes that only can be quantified with analytical equipment. A true communicator, it was one of the few presentations that really made a balanced bridge between science and conservation.
Wednesday there were no working group presen‐ tations as in the morning the plenary sessions took place. The afternoon was reserved for the many technical visits possible to choose from. From Lisbon to Sintra, there were groups that could visit virtually any major museum, monastery, historical parks or monuments in the area. As I already knew most of those places, I chose one of the few I didn’t had the pleasure to visit before: the Museum of Science and Botanical Garden from the University of Lisbon. The highlight of the visit was the Laboratorio Chimico, an original nine‐ teenth‐century Chemistry Laboratory with its old instruments, which was used for teaching. One of the highlights of the conference was on the scientific research group on the last day. From all the presentations I assisted, Bill Wey, from Central Heritage Agency of The Netherlands, was the one to have the best interaction with the public, not e‐conser vation
Given that the main theme of the conference was so broad, I think the overall set of presentations contributed to it one way or another. Although many of them were interesting, they were focused on familiar subjects as in many other conservation conferences: ethical reflexions, scientific research results and lots of case studies which mostly interest those from a specific field. Being one of the biggest conferences in conservation, besides regular material research, it could have included some presentations about the actual situation of conservation, the lack of funding and jobs, and 35
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Sarah Court and Jane thomson presenting "Recognizing the interdependent relationship between heritage and its wider context" during the plenary session.
the closure of teaching institutions. On the over‐ all, there were several new contributions but always focused on small details. As science histo‐ rian James Burke once said, “people tend to become experts in highly specialized fields, lear‐ ning more and more about less and less” and that was precisely my impression. Most of the presen‐ tations, mine included, were too focused on parti‐ cularities. This could have been counterbalanced by more presentations speaking about the holistic views of conservation and, why not, of the role it plays in cultural heritage, in the cultural identity, in the actual world. As a final point, I enjoyed very much the confe‐ rence and meeting fellow colleagues although perhaps the conference was too big, too massive to take advantage from all the possibilities it offered. The next general ICOM meeting will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2013 and the next ICOM‐CC will be in Melbourne, Australia in 2014. I hope to see you there. 36
RUI BORDALO Conservator‐restorer Contact: rmbordalo@e‐conservationline.com Rui Bordalo is a conservator‐restorer specialised in easel paintings. He has a particular interest in the study of art materials and in the application of new technologies to conservation. This interest led him to pursue a PhD at the Courtauld Institute of Art in the application of laser technology in the cleaning of paintings. He currently teaches several disciplines of the conservation course at Portucalense University, Porto. He is a board member of the Portuguese Association of Conser‐ vator‐Restorers (ARP) and a Committee member of the European Confederation of Conservator‐ Restorers' Organisations (ECCO) since 2005. He is also one of the founders of e‐conservation maga‐ zine, where he is currently the editor‐in‐chief.
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article
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THE EXTERNAL ION BEAM FACILITY IN PORTUGAL FOR STUDYING CULTURAL HERITAGE
By Victoria Corregidor Luís Cerqueira Alves Paula Alexandra Rodrigues Márcia Vilarigues Rui C. Silva
THE EXTERNAL ION BEAM FACILITY IN PORTUGAL
In 2008 an external ion microbeam analytical end‐station became operational at the ion microprobe facility of the Laboratório de Feixe de Iões at Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear, Portugal. Its availability adds a set of valuable analytical techniques for the community involved in the study and conservation of Cultural Heritage. With the external ion microbeam it is possible to analyze the elemental composition (in point, line or areal maps modes) and perform structural studies of different objects, large or small, using Ion Beam Analysis techniques in open air or helium atmosphere – i.e. without vacuum conditions – and without the need of sampling or any special preparation. In this article, the details concerning the external beam set‐up and a selection of the results obtained from selected analyzed objects will be presented. These objects include glass fragments from a Roman villa and religious gilt objects from the XVI‐XVIII centuries.
Introduction Knowing the composition of an object is extremely important for the conservator‐restorer’s work. It can also indicate, for example, if the constituent elements are consistent with the ones used in the period to which the object is supposed to be. Furthermore, the trace element concentration can indicate in some cases the provenance or relate it with other objects of the same type. The possi‐ bility to analyze and identify corrosion products is also important, in order to better understand the mechanisms of degradation, which is essen‐ tial for their preservation for the present and fu‐ ture generations. There are several available analytical techniques that allow us to know the composition of materi‐ als, such as X‐Ray Fluorescence (XRF) and X‐Ray Diffraction (XRD) performed with portable equip‐ ments, UV‐Visible and FTIR spectrometries and/or Scanning Electron Microscopy, etc. Some of them may provide information about the compounds that are present in the sample while others will determine their elements. Some of them are de‐ structive, others are not. Generally speaking, we can say that for each object and depending on the information we are looking for, there is a set of analytical techniques that are more suitable than e‐conser vation
others. The choice is not always straightforward, but should be jointly determined by the different specialists involved. One of the complicated choices refers to the sam‐ pling process. It is true that along the years the quantities of material needed for some techniques have been reduced substantially. In some cases, the quantities needed are in the range of micro‐ grams and the resulting marks are not visible to the naked eye. But even under these conditions sometimes sampling is not possible. On the other hand, if we are interested in the material “core” of the object, there may be no other alternative and sampling is necessary. There are also techniques where sampling is not needed although they may induce permanent changes to the objects’ surface to be analyzed. For example, a surface preparation is needed or the technique may alter the surface composition such as those involving sputtering or laser abla‐ tion processes. In this article, the characterization of different objects by means of Ion Beam Analytical (IBA) techniques is reported. These are a set of tech‐ niques used to study the composition and/or the quality of samples in a non‐destructive way, using 41
VICTORIA CORREGIDOR et al.
Figure 1. Scheme of interactions between ion beam particles and sample atoms with the corresponding IBA techniques.
a beam of high energy particles, typically of 1–3 MeV. Upon interaction in the sample, the beam induces the emission of secondary radiation and particles: depending on which one we choose to explore, there will be a specific IBA technique for each one (Figure 1).
information, but what is really remarkable is the information that can be extracted when they are combined.
When the X‐rays generated by the sample are re‐ corded and identified, the Particle Induced X‐ray Emission (PIXE) technique is used. In the same way, Particle Induced Gamma Emission (PIGE) is used when gamma rays are involved. If the back‐ scattered particles are recorded, Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) is performed. When visible light is emitted and recorded, the technique is called Ion Beam Induced Lumines‐ cence (IBIL). There are other IBA techniques that are not included in this introduction and we en‐ courage the interested reader to read through the specialized literature [1, 2].
A wide range of elements are automatically iden‐ tified with PIXE, and the sensitivity is very high, typically in the range of some μg/g. However, the detection of elements with an atomic number less than 12 is poor, but the PIGE technique is an ex‐ cellent alternative for their identification. With RBS the compositional depth profiles, i.e. the relative concentration of the constituents as a function of depth, can be determined. In this way, the combination of PIXE and RBS allows to obtain the concentration of the majority of ele‐ ments present – from trace to major elements – and information on their depth distribution as well. And, if we add the PIGE technique then the concentration of almost every element of the periodic table may be obtained.
In our case, the most used IBA techniques are PIXE, PIGE and RBS. Each one can provide different
The experimental conditions involve low beam currents, in the order of 0.5‐3 nA and short time,
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THE EXTERNAL ION BEAM FACILITY IN PORTUGAL
around 10‐20 minutes, is needed to acquire the spectra. Under these conditions structural dam‐ age or defect creation is minimized and IBA tech‐ niques are considered as non‐destructive, but this consideration has to be contextualized since the measurements are usually done in a chamber under vacuum conditions: ‐ whatever the chamber dimensions are, there will always be a sample size limitation, implying that sampling may be necessary; ‐ working under vacuum conditions can induce mechanical damage: thermal, drying or charging effects can cause cracks or even detachment or sample fracture; ‐ some samples have complex geometry making them difficult to handle under these conditions. In order to improve these conditions and avoid the vacuum limitations, the particle beam must leave the chamber and meet the object in open air. That is, an external beam is required as well as the ability to perform measurements under atmospheric conditions. The following aspects should also be considered when working under these conditions: ‐ a thin window or barrier material, which can withstand the pressure difference between atmos‐ phere and vacuum, and the buildup of radiation damage as the beam passes through it while inter‐ fering the least with its quality (energy and col‐ limation/focusing), must be provided; ‐ air absorbs the low energy X‐rays generated, and slows down the incident and backscattered parti‐ cles from the sample; ‐ air contains Ar that is excited by the beam origi‐ nating X‐rays within the usual energy detectable range then interfering with the X‐rays emitted from the sample; ‐ beam spatial resolution and detection limits will be degraded as compared with analysis performed under vacuum conditions. e‐conser vation
In the next section the solutions adopted to re‐ solve or minimize these effects will be presented and discussed. Generally speaking, the use of ion beam analysis for the study of historical‐artistic objects is very much linked to the development of the PIXE tech‐ nique in the early 1970s. Another milestone was the implementation of the IBA techniques in air, allowing in situ analysis of objects of large sizes or too fragile to be in vacuum. The development of a focusing system and the use of ultra‐thin exit windows enabled transforming it into a real ex‐ tension of nuclear microprobes. From the approximately 100 nuclear microprobe facilities in the world, only a few are entirely or partially dedicated to research in the fields of patrimony studies. This new facility in Portugal adds to a number of others in laboratories across Europe where these techniques were made avail‐ able, namely the AGLAE (Accélérateur Grand Louvre d´Analyse Elémentaire) in Paris [3], LABEC (Labo‐ ratorio di Tecniche Nucleari Applicate ai Beni Cul‐ turali) in Italy [4], or the CNA (Centro Nacional de Aceleradores) [5] and the CMAM (Centro de Micro‐ análisis de Materiales) [6], both in Spain.
The Portuguese External Beam Facility Assembly of the external ion beam analytical end‐ station started in 2005 under the POCI/CTM/606 85/2004 project funded by the Portuguese Foun‐ dation for Science and Technology (FCT). The first and main objective of the project was to install the external beam analytical end‐station at the existing microprobe facility at Instituto Tecnoló‐ gico e Nuclear (ITN), in operation since 1999 [7]. Figure 2 shows a photograph of the microprobe set‐up. The proton beam is generated by a 2.5 MV singe ended Van de Graaff accelerator and directed 43
VICTORIA CORREGIDOR et al.
Figure 2. Microprobe installed at the Nuclear and Technological Institute.
to the microprobe beam line through a 90º bend‐ ing magnet. The microprobe collimator slits, scanning coils, lenses and chamber are mounted on a single con‐ crete block sitting on a 1 cm thick plate of poly‐ styrene foam to minimize vibrations. An Oxford Microbeams magnetic quadrupole triplet is used to focus the beam. The scanning coils located before the lenses allow to raster the beam over the sample surface, with a maximum area of 2.6x2.6 mm2 when vacuum conditions and 2 MeV protons are used. Figure 2 also shows the vacuum chamber which can support up to eight different detectors and the cryostat needed for the X‐ray detector. The external beam set‐up photograph is shown in figure 3. Each component will be described in the following paragraphs taking as reference the considerations made above in relation to the work under atmospheric conditions: 44
‐ The exit nozzle assembly is composed by two parts: one fixed to the chamber and one other, replaceable during the experiments if needed, having at its end a vacuum tight extraction win‐ dow made of 100 nm thick Si3N4 membrane held in a 200 μm thick Si frame, allowing nearly 100% transmission with negligible energy loss. The size of this window (1x1 mm2) sets the limit of the maximum beam scanning area. ‐ In order to reduce air interference during the measurements, a helium rich atmosphere is set by insufflating He gas towards the analyzed region by means of a nylon chamber, placed around the particles detector and connected to a He flow controller. ‐ To reduce the degradation of beam spatial reso‐ lution the distances should be kept as small as possible, while allowing the outgoing radiations to reach the detectors. The distance between the e‐conser vation
THE EXTERNAL ION BEAM FACILITY IN PORTUGAL
beam exit window and the object is thus set to 3 mm, being controlled by reference to two inter‐ secting laser beams. The object can be moved in the three directions and accurately positioned by means of a special x‐y‐z table. For assistance during the whole sample positioning procedure a mini‐video camera is used. The detectors are placed around the exit nozzle in different configurations according to the type of radiation to detect. The X‐ray detector is a Bruker Si SDD detector with 8 μm Be window and 145 eV resolution at 5.9 keV. It is placed 2.8 cm from the sample at an angle of 45º to the beam direction. The backscattered protons are detected with a Si surface barrier detector placed at an angle of 47º to the beam direction, 2.2 cm away from the sam‐ ple. When necessary, the gamma rays are detected with a large volume ORTEC HPGe detector with 45% efficiency and 1.9 keV energy resolution, placed at 45° to the beam direction.
Figure 3. External beam set‐up: 1. X ray detector; 2. mini‐camera; 3. exit nozzle with a 100 nm thick Si3N4 window; 4. particle detector with He flux; 5. Positioning lasers.
Figure 4 shows images of a 2000 and a 50 mesh copper grids recorded under vacuum and external conditions, respectively, and under identical
Figure 4. Images for a 2000 mesh and 50 mesh copper grid recorded under vacuum and external ion beam set‐up under identical experimental conditions.
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experimental conditions (proton beams of 2 MeV energy and 1 nA current). For the former, the spatial resolution is 2x3 μm2 while for the latter external conditions the best spatial resolution is 60x60 μm2 when working under helium rich at‐ mosphere. In what concerns the analysis of the data gener‐ ated by the techniques, there is specific software to analyze the different types of spectra and ex‐ tract the required information. In the case of PIXE, the AXIL/QXAS [8] program is extensively used for X‐ray lines deconvolution and peak areas extrac‐ tion, and DATTPIXE [9] for quantification. GUPIX [10] software was also used for X‐ray spectra de‐ convolution and quantification, and its results were compared with the ones obtained using AX‐ IL+DATTPIXE showing a good correlation. As PIXE is not efficient for the detection and quantifica‐ tion of elements with low atomic numbers, namely for Na and Mg, these elements are detected and quantified by PIGE, in proton capture nuclear re‐ actions, by considering the yields of the 440 keV and 585 keV gamma lines respectively in the gam‐ ma spectra of the daughter nuclei. Information on layered targets is gathered by means of the elemental depth distributions extracted from the recorded RBS spectra. The NDF code [11] is used for RBS spectra fitting and sample composition determined in a self‐consisting way with PIXE data simulated by means of LibCPIXE code [12], an open‐source library for multilayered samples that can work jointly with the NDF code.
Applications The applications of IBA techniques to the study of Cultural Heritage objects are as varied as the objects themselves. Different objects were studied using the microprobe (under vacuum and also in external conditions) located at ITN. Some examples 46
are Arraiolos tapestries [13], stained glasses [14], jewellery [15], and ceramics [16]. In this section two case studies selected among the works performed are presented. They show the versatility of the set‐up since different detec‐ tors, software and experimental conditions were used to study each specific case. The case studies refer to Roman glasses from Museu Municipal de Arqueologia da Amadora (MMAR), and religious gilt objects dated from the XVI to the XVIII centuries belonging to Casa‐Museu Dr. Anastácio Gonçalves (CMAG). Both museums are located in Portugal.
Roman Glasses The Roman glasses from MMAR are referred to different occupation times of a Roman villa during the III and IV centuries A.D. at Quinta da Bolacha, Portugal. This Roman villa was discovered in 1979 during the prospection of a Roman aqueduct in Amadora. The archaeological works made possible identi‐ fying sealed contexts that are attributed to the III and IV centuries A.D., together with revolved contexts of uncertain dating. The study intended to materially characterize the occupation periods, resorting to analyzes of glass fragments, as well as to associate the fragments from revolved con‐ texts with those from other contexts, trying to determine its possible chronological attribution. The poor state of preservation of these glasses strongly advised against analysis in vacuum, leaving the external beam as the only suitable alternative option. Results were obtained with the use of a proton beam of 2 MeV of energy and 1 nA of current. e‐conser vation
THE EXTERNAL ION BEAM FACILITY IN PORTUGAL
Results were constantly compared for each sample with those obtained using Corning standard reference glasses with well known composition. Figure 5 shows two fragments that were attributed to the first occupation period (III and IV centuries A.D.) of the Roman villa, and considered by archaeologists as belonging to the same object. The analysis performed using the external micro‐ probe set‐up showed different compositions for both fragments. The larger fragment is abnormally rich in K, as compared to other samples, while being low in Na, contrarily to the smaller one [17]. Therefore these two fragments should not be con‐ sidered as belonging to the same original object (as opposed to what was initially thought). A very interesting capability of the external micro‐ probe applied to the study of these objects is the possibility to perform scan analysis. Elemental scans are presented in figure 6 that show the distribution of Si, Ca and Mn in a region of a glass fragment partially covered by an evident corrosion over layer. The corrosion region correlates to a higher content of Mn due to leaching and surface redeposition, and also Fe, probably from the soil contamination. There is also anti‐correlation to the contents of Si and Ca, probably due to the leaching of these elements from the glass matrix.
Figure 5. Fragments recovered from excavation site in Amadora, Portugal, attributed to the first occupation period of the Roman villa (III‐IV centuries A.D.).
contents of Na, together with reduced contents of K and Mg, which are typical of soda‐lime‐silica glasses produced by resorting to natron as a source of alkali. Specific contents of Sr and Mg, along with absence of Zr, indicate the use of coastal Mediterranean sands as raw material. It was also possible to determine from the X‐ray spectrum (Figure 7a) significant levels of Sb and Pb in one fragment, a deep blue tessera shown in Figure 7b, indicating the use of opacifying agents which were in use until the IV century A.D., con‐ firming the time interval of the villa’s occupation.
Gilt Objects Contrary to the glass fragment referred to above, analysis of the remaining selected glasses from the different contexts showed moderate to high
Another interesting example is the study of reli‐ gious gilt objects belonging to the CMAG Collection:
Figure 6. Elemental distribution of Si, Ca and Mn. On the corroded areas there is a higher concentration of Mn and Fe.
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Figure 7. a) Normalized PIXE spectrum recorded under atmospheric conditions; b) Blue tessera glass.
reference samples with known composition, brass NBS 1105 and Ag–Cu (80–20) alloy were analyzed throughout the measurements.
Figure 8. Normalized PIXE spectra from inside the cup (red) and an external gilt motif (black) of the ciborium (CMAG 1180 Collection).
a reliquary (CMAG 1194) from the XVI century, which has two visible hallmarks (AR SII) on the base and on the lid, and it is believed to be of Spanish origin; an ostensorium (CMAG 1164) from the mid‐XVIII century with a visible hallmark indi‐ cating the goldsmith (J.P./C.) and Portuguese origin (a crown L, from Lisbon); a ciborium (CMAG 1180) with an oval base and partially gilt with several religious motifs. Regarding the experimental conditions, the X‐ray spectra were acquired with a 350 μm thick Mylar foil in order to filter the Au and Hg M‐lines and a He flow was used to improve the resolution. Two 48
The gilt method has been used since ancient times to make an object look like cast gold and at the same time to improve the surface of the object for corrosion resistance. The technique has been developed and improved along the centuries. The method used for these objects is the mercury gilt, also known as fire gilding. It is based on the ap‐ plication of an amalgam composed of gold and mercury onto a metal surface [18], then heating it to 250‐300 ºC for a short time (few minutes), and cooling down, followed by polishing until the object shows a smooth and brilliant surface. As it is expected, differences in composition in the object were found according to the different provenances and manufacturing dates. The gilt results were very dependent on the goldsmith experience, since the temperature and times were “visually controlled” and at the same time they are crucial on this process. For example, the time was controlled as “when the amalgam changes colour from grey to dull yellow” [19]. Because of that it was not surprising finding different Hg and Au/Ag concentration ratios for each piece, as is shown in table I [20]. e‐conser vation
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Table I. Results of X–ray diffraction analysis of greywacke rocks from Wadi Hammamat.
Ag (%) Au (%) Hg (%) Impurities Reliquary
10
75
10
Ostentorium
10
77
12
Ciborium
12
78
8
Cu, Ca, Fe, Pb, Zn
These differences in concentration were found not only between objects, but also in different parts of an object. One clear example of this is the cibo‐ rium. Figure 8 represents the X‐ray spectra recor‐ ded in two different parts of the ciborium which corresponds to the inside of the cup and to one of the gilt external motifs, respectively. Both areas are gilt with homogeneous distribution but with different composition: the inner part shows an average composition of 25% Ag, 60% Au and 15% Hg while the external motif has an average com‐ position of 9% Ag, 84% Au and only 5% Hg. This
difference in concentration can be attributed to the different temperatures achieved during the gilt process according with the Au‐Hg phase dia‐ gram [21], or to the Au layer thickness, being lower inside the ciborium. Another possibility is the handling of the piece once the external parts are more predisposed to handling that the inner parts, or to the cleaning process with different products. In figure 9a, the elemental distribution of Hg, Au, Ag and Cu is presented, covering a 800x800 μm2 area corresponding to the fastener of the reli‐ quary (figure 9b). In fact, it was found that not only the fastener, but also the hinge show a quite similar elemental distribution as the one shown in figure 9a. From these elemental distribution maps the rela‐ tionship between the Hg/Au and the Ag/Cu atoms can be extracted. The Au and Hg elements are associated and they follow the same pattern in the studied region. On the other hand, the copper follows the silver distribution. The addition of Cu to Ag was used to improve the hardness of the silver, a method that is still used nowadays.
Conclusions The external ion beam analytical end‐station at ITN, Portugal, is a valuable facility for studying a Figure 9. a) Elemental distribution of Ag, Cu, Hg and Au; b) View of the exit nozzle and the object to be analyzed (the fastener of the reliquary (GMAG 1194).
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wide variety of objects related to our common Cultural Heritage and History. The technique it‐ self is non‐invasive and it is expected to become a standard tool available to the conservator and conservation‐scientists. Different examples of applications have been shown in order to illustrate the versatility of the Portuguese set‐up. It is ex‐ pected that in a near future the techniques it provides can be increasingly used as standard tool accessible for the cultural heritage profes‐ sionals community.
Acknowledgments This work was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) under the POCI/CTM/60 685/2004 project. V. Corregidor acknowledges the program Ciência 2008 of FCT Portugal. We also would like to thank Museu Municipal de Arqueo‐ logia da Amadora, Casa‐Museu Dr. Anastácio Gon‐ çalves and I.M.C. for allowing us to analyze their objects.
and Methods in Physics Research B 161‐163, 2000, pp. 328‐333, doi:10.1016/S0168‐583X(99)00899‐X [4] E. Colombo, S. Calusi, R. Cossio, L. Giuntini, L. Giudice, P.A. Mandò, C. Manfredotti, M. Massi, F.A. Mirto, E. Vittone, “Recent developments of ion beam induced luminescence at the external scanning microbeam facility of the LABEC labora‐ tory in Florence”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 266, 2008, pp. 1527‐1532, doi:10.1016/j.nimb.2007.11.067 [5] M.A. Ontalba, F.J. Ager, M.D. Ynsa, B.M. Gómez Tubío, M.Á. Respaldiza, J. García López, F. Fernán‐ dez‐Gómez, M.L. de la Bandera, G.W. Grime, “Ex‐ ternal microbeam set‐up at the CNA (Sevilla) and its application to the study of Tartesic jewellery”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 181, 2001, pp. 664‐669, doi:10.1016/S0168‐ 583X(01)00355‐X [6] O. Enguita, M.T. Fernández‐Jiménez, G. García, A. Climent‐Font, T. Calderón, G.W. Grime, “The new external microbeam facility at the 5 MV Tan‐ detron accelerator laboratory in Madrid: beam characterisation and first results”, Nuclear Instru‐ ments and Methods in Physics Research B 219‐220, 2004, pp. 384‐288, doi:10.1016/j.nimb.2004.01.08
References [1] Y. Wang, M.A. Nastasi (ed.), Handbook of Modern Ion Beam Materials Analysis, Cambridge University Press, 2nd Edition, 2010 [2] G. Zschornack, Handbook of X‐Ray Data, Springer, 2007 [3] T. Calligaro, J.C. Dran, E. Ioannidou, B. Moig‐ nard, L. Pichon, J. Salomon, “Development of an external beam nuclear microprobe on the Aglae facility of the Louvre museum”, Nuclear Instruments 50
[7] L.C. Alves, M.B.H. Breese, E. Alves, A. Paúl, M.R. da Silva, M.F. da Silva, J.C. Soares, “Micron‐ scale analysis of SiC/SiCf composites using the new Lisbon nuclear microprobe”, Nuclear Instru‐ ments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 161‐163, 2000, pp. 334‐338, doi:10.1016/S0168‐ 583X(99)00768‐5 [8] Seibersdorf Laboratories, QXAS, in X‐Ray Fluo‐ rescence Laboratory, URL (accessed 29 September 2011) e‐conser vation
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[9] M.A. Reis, L.C. Alves, “DATTPIXE, a computer package for TTPIXE data analysis”, Nuclear Instru‐ ments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 68, 1992, pp. 300‐304, doi:10.1016/0168‐583X(92) 96098‐J [10] J.A. Maxwell, W.J. Teesdale, J.L. Campbell, “The Guelph PIXE software package II”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 95, 1995, pp. 407‐421, doi:10.1016/0168‐583X(94) 00540‐0 [11] N.P. Barradas, C. Jeynes, K.P. Homewood, B.J. Sealy, M. Milosavljevic, “RBS/simulated an‐ nealing analysis of silicide formation in Fe/Si systems”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 139, 1998, pp. 235‐238, doi:10.1016/S0168‐583X(97)00964‐6 [12] C. Pascual‐Izarra, M.A. Reis, N.P. Barradas, “Simultaneous PIXE and RBS data analysis using Bayesian inference with the DataFurnace code”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms 249, 2006, pp. 780‐783, doi:10.1016/j.nimb. 2006.03.190 [13] A. Manhita, C. Costa, T. Ferreira, J. Mirão, H. Vargas, I. Ribeiro, I. Seruya, T. Pacheco, L.C. Alves, A. Candeias, “Rediscovering the materials of Ar‐ raiolos tapestries: fibre and mordant analysis by SEM‐EDS and μ‐PIXE”, Microscopy and Microana‐ lysis 14, 2008, pp. 91‐94, doi: 10.1017/S14319276 08089484 [14] M. Vilarigues, P. Redol, A. Machado, P.A. Rodrigues, L.C. Alves, R.C. da Silva, “Corrosion of 15th and early 16th century stained glass from the monastery of Batalha studied with external e‐conser vation
ion beam”, Materials Characterization 62, 2011, pp. 211‐217, doi:10.1016/j.matchar.2010.12.001 [15] L.C. Alves, M.F. Araujo, A.M. Monge Soares, “Estudo de um torques proveniente do noroeste peninsular”, O Arqueólogo Português 20, 2002, pp. 20 [16] M. Pereira, T. de Lacerda‐Arôso, M.J.M. Go‐ mes, A. Mata, L.C. Alves, P. Colomban, “Ancient Portuguese Ceramic Wall Tiles (“Azulejos”): Chara‐ cterization of the Glaze and Ceramic Pigments”, Journal of Nano Research 8, 2009, pp. 79‐88, doi: 10.4028/www.scientific.net/JNanoR.8.79 [17] P.A. Rodrigues, Archaeological Roman Glasses: Comparative characterization by non‐destructive analytical techniques, Master thesis, New Univer‐ sity of Lisbon, Lisbon, 2011 [18] A. Oddy, “Gilding through the Ages”, Gold Bullettin 14(2), 1981, pp. 75‐79, doi: 10.1007/BF0 3214601 [19] M. Chapman, “Ancient & Historic Metals”, in Conservation and Scientific Research, D.A. Scott, J. Podany, B.B. Considine (ed.), The Getty Con‐ servation Institute, 1991, pp. 229 [20] V. Corregidor, L.C. Alves, N.P. Barradas, M.A. Reis, M.T. Marques, J.A. Ribeiro, “Characteriza‐ tion of mercury gilding art objects by external proton beam”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms, 2011, doi:10.1016/ j.nimb.2011.04.070 [21] H. Okamoto, T.B. Massaiski, “The Au‐Hg (Gold‐Mercury) System”, Bulletin of Alloy Phase Diagrams 10, 1989, pp. 50‐58, doi: 10.1007/BF0 2882176
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VICTORIA CORREGIDOR Researcher vicky.corregidor@itn.pt Victoria Corregidor is a researcher at Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear since 2009, where she is involved in the application of Ion Beam Techniques to the study of Cultural Heritage. She received her higher education in Physics at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, where she obtained her PhD in Physics and Materials Science in 2003. She is also member of Centro de Física Nuclear da Univer‐ sidade de Lisboa. Her other research fields are growth and characterization of semiconductors and materials for photovoltaic applications.
LUÍS CERQUEIRA ALVES Researcher lcalves@itn.pt Luís Cerqueira Alves is a researcher at Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear. He has been working in the development and application of ion beam analy‐ tical techniques with the 2.5 MV Van de Graaff accelerator installed at ITN, in particular using a Nuclear Microprobe. The main applications of the implemented techniques have been performed in the material science, mineralogy, archaeometry and cultural heritage fields. He obtained his MSc (1993) and PhD (2004) in Physics from Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa.
ALEXANDRA RODRIGUES Conservator‐restorer alexandra.rodrigues@itn.pt Alexandra Rodrigues graduated in Conservation and Restoration from Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia of Universidade Nova de Lisboa in 2003. She obtained her MSc in Archaeological Roman 52
Glasses in 2011 also at FCT‐UNL. Since 2005 she has been a collaborator with ITN, where she was involved with the development of the external ion beam analyses setup.
MÁRCIA VILARIGUES Conservation‐Scientist mgv@fct.unl.pt Márcia Vilarigues is a professor at the Conserva‐ tion Department of Faculdade de Ciências e Tecno‐ logia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa (FCT‐UNL). She is also the director at the Research Unit VICARTE (Glass and Ceramics for the Arts). She obtained her PhD in Conservation Science at the Conserva‐ tion Department of FCT‐UNL on the subject of stained glass corrosion under the supervision of Professors Rui Silva and António Pires de Matos. She graduated in Physics at FCT‐UNL and did her Master is Surface Science and Technology at the Faculdade de Ciências of Universidade de Lisboa. Since 2001 she works on the characterization of historical materials, mainly of glass.
RUI SILVA Researcher rmcs@itn.pt Rui Silva is member of Centro de Física Nuclear da Universidade de Lisboa and Senior Research Officer at Instituto Tecnológico e Nuclear where he conducts research activities in materials science using Ion Beam Analyses. Since 2001 he is collaborating in the implementation of the IBA techniques for characterization of historical materials. He also collaborates with the Research Unit VICARTE (Glass and Ceramics for the Arts) through usage of IBA as a characterization tool helpful in the development and understanding of colour giving mechanisms in glasses. e‐conser vation
THE CONTRIBUTION OF TRANSMITTED INFRARED IMAGING TO NON‐INVASIVE STUDY OF CANVAS PAINTINGS AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY – ALEXANDROS SOUTZOS MUSEUM, GREECE
By Anna Moutsatsou Dimitra Skapoula Michael Doulgeridis
ANNA MOUTSATSOU et al.
Transmitted infrared imaging is a neglected technique for the study of canvas paintings, having only some few relevant references. The present paper documents the use of transmitted infrared imaging in a non‐invasive study of canvas paintings from the National Gallery – Alexandros Soutzos Museum in Athens, Greece. It is shown that even low resolution images in a narrow spectral region (up to 1150 nm) may reveal valuable information regarding the underdrawing and underpainting, in cases where transmitted visible and reflected infrared imaging with the same device provided limited information.
Introduction Non‐invasive imaging techniques have a promi‐ nent position in the study and conservation of easel paintings since decades. The production of infrared (IR) images is especially appreciated because it reveals features under the pictorial layer such as underdrawings, pentimenti, etc. [1]. Based on the extensive use of IR Reflectography since the 1960s [2], multispectral imaging has largely widened the application possibilities of non‐invasive techniques in IR spectral regions. Nowadays, it is considered a particularly useful technique for the study of materials and painting techniques and assessment of the conservation state of paintings in various substrates, as well as archival material [3]. The literature concerning the study of canvas paintings refers almost exclusively to the imaging
of the reflection of IR radiation in wavelengths in the near‐infrared (NIR) region (760‐2500 nm) [4]. On the contrary, works that include reference to information of transmitted IR imaging are very limited [5‐7]. Suggestively, Kushel [5] had men‐ tioned already in 1985 that the mapping of the transmitted IR radiation was able to reveal, often with extreme accuracy, whole underlying painting compositions. In that paper, a vidicon detector with a spectral response up to 1800 nm, an infrared image converter unit and standard infrared photo‐ graphic materials such as external Kodak cut‐off filters and infrared films were used. Gavrilov et al. [6], in one of the most recent papers available, presents an observation scheme under transmitted lighting using a CCD detector with spectral sensi‐ tivity up to 1100 nm equipped with cut‐off filters. The authors mentioned that many underlying data of the painting composition were revealed, as well as an underlying original signature.
Figure 1. Reflectography (left) and transillumination (right) set‐ups.
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Nonetheless, that was not the main subject of the paper, and no emphasis was given on the advan‐ tages of the technique. At the Laboratory of Physicochemical Research of the Conservation Department of the National Gallery ‐ Alexandros Soutzos Museum, transmitted NIR imaging constitutes an inseparable part of the daily diagnostic work. The cases presented in this study suggest that even the use of an imaging device with limited spectral sensitivity and low resolution may provide significant information regarding the underdrawing and underpainting in canvas paintings, in cases where reflected IR images of the same spectral band captured by the same imaging device present constraints. More‐ over, it is a non‐invasive technique that does not require extra cost or time and can be included in the standard examination procedure of a museum laboratory with limited imaging equipment.
Experimental The canvas paintings presented in this paper belong to the collection of the National Gallery ‐ Alexandros Soutzos Museum in Athens, Greece. For the capture of IR images, a MuSISTM 2007 multispectral imager was used [8]. This camera was developed in the late 1990s and offers a series of imaging choices (NIR reflection in two spectral bands (750‐950 nm and 950‐1150 nm), infrared false‐color, visible reflection, visible fluorescence and ultraviolet reflectance (320‐ 400 nm)) although it does not provide any spec‐
Figure 2. Visible image before restoration of Head of a girl (s.d.) by I. Rizos, oil painting on canvas, 35x27 cm, inventory number P.682. Reflected (right above) and transmitted (right below) IR detail of the painting (spectral range 950‐1150 nm).
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trometric capabilities as newer models do. The CCD detector operates in the spectral region of 320‐1150 nm and provides a spatial analysis of 734x559 pixels. The images presented below were captured in the imaging mode of IR reflection in the 950‐1150 nm wavelength band. For the IR reflectograms, two OSRAM Halogen Display/Optic Lamps (color tem‐ perature of 3400 K) are symmetrically placed in front of the painting. In order to record the trans‐ mitted IR radiation, one light source is placed in the back side of the painting at a safe distance to avoid heating and in such a position where the lighting would be constricted into the bounds of the canvas substrate. The reflectography and transillumination set‐ups are comparatively pre‐ sented in Figure 1.
Results and Discussion Some representative examples of numerous case studies where transmitted IR images have provided valuable information are presented here. In these, the comparison between reflection and transmis‐ sion images refers to the visualization of the un‐ derdrawing and underpaintings. The painting Head of a girl (s.d.) by Iakovos Rizos (1849‐1926), a famous 19th century Greek painter, was examined using the MuSISTM 2007 system prior to conservation treatment. In the visible image (Figure 2a), a shadow in the background from the nose to the bottom right corner is discer‐ ned. The IR reflection image (Figure 2b) does not provide any further information about any under‐ lying form. On the contrary, the image of trans‐
TRANSMITTED INFRARED IMAGING OF PAINTINGS
Figure 3. Psyche (1880‐1882) by G. F. Watts, oil painting on can‐ vas, 190x60 cm, inventory number P.258. Visible image (left) be‐ fore restoration, transmitted (above) and reflected (below) IR details of the painting (spectral range 950‐1150nm).
mitted IR of the same wavelength reveals a man’s head looking towards the opposite direction, which was later overpainted by the visible head of the girl (Figure 2c). In the case of Psyche (1880‐1882) by G.F. Watts (Figure 3a), the transmitted IR images revealed a spontaneous and high quality underdrawing (Figure 3b), while the corresponding reflection images of the reflected radiation in the same spectral region did not provide any relevant infor‐ mation (Figure 3c). Finally, one of the most complete examples of the contribution of transmitted IR imaging to the e‐conser vation
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Figure 4. Return to the Village (1952) by Theofrastos Triantafyllides, oil on canvas,106x156 cm, inventory number P.2640. Visible image before restoration (above left), mosaic of the IR reflection (above right) and transmission (below) images (spectral range 950‐1150 nm).
multispectral study and documentation of the canvas paintings is the examination of the painting entitled Return to the Village (1952) by Greek painter Theofrastos Triantafyllides (Figure 4a). The reflected IR image in the 950‐1150 nm region (Figure 4b) provides information only related to an underlying image playing a guitar 58
on the right, while the imaging of the transmit‐ ted IR radiation of the same spectral region de‐ picts more underlying forms such as two more human figures, architectural elements, and a glass or jug, as well as extensive underdrawing executed by both dry and wet media (Figure 4c).
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Conclusions Using the same imaging device, transmitted IR imaging may provide more information regard‐ ing the underdrawing and underpainting than reflectograms of the same spectral region, in cases where the structure of the canvas paintings and the imaging performance factors (spectral sensitivity, spatial analysis, etc.) allow so. The information obtained by transmitted IR ima‐ ging can also be provided by other imaging tech‐ niques such as IR imaging at longer wavelengths and X‐Ray radiography. However, transmitted NIR imaging is a non‐invasive technique that does not require extra cost or time and can be easily included in the standard examination procedure even with limited imaging equipment. The great usefulness of this technique was here briefly ex‐ emplified with three canvas paintings from the National Gallery ‐ Alexandros Soutzos Museum collection. In order to fully understand the theoretical background of transmitted IR imaging and the correlation of its results with the physicochemical parameters that form the imaging result, such as internal scattering, it is necessary to examine a set of reference samples based on an integrated standardized methodology. In addition, the pre‐ paration and examination of such samples would further contribute to making the most of the technique’s potential.
Acknowledgments Warm thanks are due to conservator Panayiotis Rompakis for his contribution to the production of visible images, to conservator Christina Kara‐ dima for her cooperation on the study of Head of e‐conser vation
a Girl (No. P.682), to curator Eftychia Agathonikou for collaboration on the study of Psyche (No. P.258), which is still in progress, and to curator Zina Kaloudi and conservator Christina Karadima for their cooperation on the study of Return to the Village (No. P.2640).
References [1] C. Daffara, R. Fontana and L. Pezzati, “Infrared Reflectography”, in D. Pinna, M. Galeotti, R. Mazzeo (eds.), Scientific Examination for the Inves‐ tigation of Paintings. A Handbook for Conservator‐ restorers, Centro Di della Edifimi srl, Florence, 2009, p. 172 [2] J.R.J. van Asperen de Boer, “Reflectography of Paintings Using an Infrared Vidicon Television System”, Studies in Conservation 14(3), 1969, pp. 96‐118 [3] C. Fisher and I. Kakoulli, “Multispectral and Hyperspectral Imaging Technologies in Conser‐ vation: Current Research and Potential Applica‐ tions”, Reviews in Conservation 7, 2006, pp. 3–16, available at URL [pdf] [4] D. Bomford (ed.), Art in the Making: Under‐ drawings in Renaissance Paintings, National Gal‐ lery Publications, London, 2002 [5] D. A. Kushel, “Applications of Transmitted In‐ frared Radiation to the Examination of Artifacts”, Studies in Conservation 30(1), 1985, pp. 1‐10 [6] D. Gavrilov, C. Ibarra‐Castanedo, E. Maeva, O. Crube, X. Maldague and R. Maev, “Infrared Methods in Noninvasive Inspection of Artwork”, Proceed‐ ings of Art’08 – 9th International Conference on Non Destructive Investigations and Microanalysis for the Non Destructive Investigations and Micro‐ 59
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analysis for the Diagnostics and Conservation of the Cultural and Environmental Heritage, Jerusalem, May 2008, 2008, CD‐ROM, available at URL [pdf] [7] P. Spezzani, Reflettoscopia e Indagini Non Distruttive: Pittura e Grafica, Olivetti, Milano, 1992, pp. 26‐27 [8] C. Balas, V. Papadakis, N. Papadakis, A. Papa‐ dakis, E. Vazgiouraki, G. Themelis, “A novel hyper‐ spectral imaging apparatus for the non‐destructive analysis of artistic and historic value”, Journal of Cultural Heritage 4, 2003, pp. 330‐337, doi:10.1016/ S1296‐2074(02)01216‐5
techniques and especially MultiSpectral Imaging for diagnosis and documentation of paintings. She has taken part in several research programmes in colla‐ boration with laboratories at the National Technical University of Athens, the Technological Education Institution of Athens and Lavrion Technological and Cultural Park. Her published work (20 papers in scientific journals and congresses) concerns docu‐ mentation of easel paintings, determination of painting materials and techniques, visualization of underlying elements (under‐drawings, signatures, etc.), mapping of past conservation treatments, etc. Furthermore, her PhD research focuses on the multi‐ variate analysis of cellulosic substrates applied on Greek watercolour paintings.
ANNA MOUTSATOU Conservation Scientist Contact: annamoutsatsou@nationalgallery.gr
DIMITRA SKAPOULA Conservator‐restorer Contact: dskapoula@gmail.com
Anna Moutsatsou is a chemical engineer and art conservator with a Master degree in Conservation Science. Since 2005 she works at the National Gal‐ lery ‐ Alexandros Soutzos Museum, Athens, Greece. The role of the chemist of the museum includes a wide range of research activities in the field of physi‐ cochemical study of artworks with the main field of interest being the application of non‐invasive
Dimitra Skapoula is an art conservator and co‐ operates as an external partner with the Easel Paintings Conservation Studio of the Conservation Department, National Gallery‐Alexandros Soutzos Museum, Athens, Greece. She has a long experi‐ ence in preventive and invasive conservation as well as in application of imaging techniques for the diagnosis of easel paintings.
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CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS e‐conservation magazine is open to submission of articles on a wide range of relevant topics for the cultural heritage sector. Next deadlines for article submission are:
MICHAEL DOULGERIDIS Conservator‐restorer Contact: michaildoulgeridis@nationalgallery.gr
Dr. Michael Doulgeridis is head of the Conserva‐ tion Department of the National Gallery – Alex‐ andros Soutzos Museum, Athens, Greece. He has an extensive knowledge of the preservation and conservation of Cultural Heritage as well as of the artworks’ construction techniques. The latter is also the subject of his PhD at the Faculty of History and Archaeology, National and Kapodis‐ trian University of Athens. Apart from his long experience in conservation, he is considered to be as one of the pioneers in the application of new technologies on the study and analysis of paint‐ ings in Greece. This is also certified by his parti‐ cipation in numerous research programmes in continuous collaboration with several laboratories in Greece and abroad. His research work is presented in more than 30 published papers. Furthermore, he has published extensively on museological and art interpretation issues.
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for Issue 23, February 2012 – submissions due 15th December 2011 for Issue 24, April 2012 – submissions due 15th February 2012 Nevertheless, you can always submit your manuscript when it is ready. Between the receival of the manuscript until the final publication may pass up to 3 months according with: ‐ the number of the manuscripts on hold, submitted earlier by other authors ‐ the release date of the upcoming issue ‐ the pre‐allocated space in the magazine to each section Please check our publication guidelines for more information.
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CHINESE ISLAMIC SCROLLS: A CONSERVATION CASE STUDY
By Aristoteles G. Sakellariou Lalit Kumar Pathak Siti Yuhainizar
CHINESE ISLAMIC SCROLLS
This article presents a case study from the Islamic Arts Museum of Malaysia’s experience with Chinese Islamic Scrolls. What makes Chinese Islamic scrolls so unique is the combination of Arabic script applied on a scroll with the principles of Chinese brush painting. The conservation team started with historic research, then examined the scroll and decided for the best treatment in respect of Eastern and Islamic disciplines. The conservation stages were documentation, removal of the old backing, cleaning, relining, drying, repairs and retouching. Once the treatment was performed, the storage had also to be considered. The parameters affecting both the treatment and storage are based on the staff experience with similar scrolls, the environment and the restrictions relating to the museum’s geographic location. Through this treatment, the conservators discovered more about the history of the artistic movement that produced, and still produces, these scrolls. This article is the outcome of observations and decisions that were made for this rather unusual object, that the IAMM conservation team wishes to share.
Introduction The Islamic Arts Museum of Malaysia (IAMM) is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital city. At just 3° north of the equator, its climate has all the characteristics of a tropical equatorial region. It is hot and humid all year round, with lot of rain [1]. The IAMM’s collections currently consist of more than eight thousand artefacts. Moreover, the IAMM is the custodian of the historic collections of JAKIM (Department of Islamic Affairs of Malaysia). Some of the most spectacular objects in display there are the large model of Mashjid Alharram in Makah and a complete ottoman period reception room from Damascus. In comparison with most of the Islamic Art museums around the world, the IAMM gives equal attention to the art from the Mogul India, the South East Asia and the Muslim Commu‐ nities of China. The last ones are well represented in IAMM [2]. The Islamic Chinese scrolls collection is one of the museum’s most unusual (Figure 1). This article explains briefly the technology of these objects and discusses a case study of a scroll, including observations and the practical solutions found for its treatment. e‐conser vation
What makes Chinese Islamic scrolls so unique is the combination of Arabic script applied to a scroll with the principles of Chinese brush painting. Literature on the subject is rather limited and the majority consists of artistic references and photographic depictions, rather than its tech‐ nology or history. A recent bibliographic search by the authors to find any similar case studies proved unfruitful. The 1300‐year history of Islam in China began at the end of the VIII century with the arrival of the first Muslims. Since that time, Muslim merchants followed the back and forth movement of caravans on the Silk Road [3]. There are ten official Muslim minorities in China, but not all of them would produce this kind of artwork. Members of the Hui ethnic group (with the greatest population) and the Dongxiang are more likely to make these scrolls than other ethnic groups, such as the Tajiks or the Uyghurs [4]. In contrast with other Arabic scripts such as Naskh or Thuluth, which are written by calligraphers throughout the Muslim world, the Chinese Islamic scrolls bare inscriptions in the Arabic‐Chinese script or Khat Sinni. It is commonly used to refer to one with thick and tapered effects, much like 63
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Figure 1. General view of the China Gallery of the Islamic Arts Museum of Malaysia where the scrolls can be seen at the rear.
Chinese calligraphy. It is used extensively in mosques and houses in north eastern China. According to Liu Baojun [5], the imam of the Habrin mosque Jing Zhai (1879‐1949) has produced marvellous pieces of this particular artwork. The Chinese Islamic scrolls are produced mainly on paper. The Chinese Shaun paper, popularly known as rice paper, has been extensively used to create these artworks [6]. Shaun paper has good absorbance of inks and colours, even though it is rather weak and fragile. In most cases, black Chinese carbon‐based ink, made of carbon soot or lamp black (pigments) and mixed with animal glue (binder), is used for calligraphy. The Chinese carbon ink is very durable and does not fade in time; this is perhaps one of the reasons that this ink was preferred. After completing his writing, the calligrapher would stamp one or two seals in red colour. Generally, the shape of most of these stamps is square. The seal may contain the artist 64
name, wishes, his logotype, a date or studio name. This tradition continues until our days. Hanging scrolls appear mostly in vertical format, while horizontal format of the calligraphy is usually meant for framing. After its composition, the paper artwork is either mounted or framed or sometimes simply placed on the wall as it is. Traditionally, these scrolls are framed or mounted on paper rather than on silk, like ordinary Chinese scrolls. Two or three layers of paper lining are used to give the scroll shape. The scrolls are lined with dyed dan yuan zhi paper and mian lian paper and dried over a flat wooden drying board for several weeks. Traditionally, various types of adhesives, papers and brushes could be used for each dif‐ ferent stage of mounting process. However, unlike the traditional ways, the commercial mounting in Malaysian contemporary workshops (with limited knowledge to the subject) uses rice starch paste and only one type of Chinese paper (commercially known as rice paper) for all purposes. e‐conser vation
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Islamic Chinese scrolls are sometimes mounted on silk, particularly since the 1990’s. In silk mounting, the silk is lined on paper with an aqueous adhesive. After drying, it is cut into several pieces (e.g. for side strips, top and lower panels). Chinese silk is available in different colours. In fact, its considerable index of trans‐ parency makes the colour of the lining paper an important factor to the final hue. The anticipated result can vary in colour and motives. Flying birds on white silk is a typical motif widely used. The typical relining procedure is as follows. After attaching various pieces of lined silk to the callig‐ raphy piece using slightly thicker paste, the object is left to dry. In order to ensure a nice and regular shape, the mounting craftsman folded the compo‐ sition half way bringing the one end over the other, and then a hole was pierced on every corner with a needle. The composition was opened flat again and by using a ruler and a knife, guided by the newly pierced holes, the edges were trimmed. At that point, the paper and silk fibres of the trim‐ med edges were exposed. The mounting crafts‐ man folded a millimetre at the back in order to secure the edges. Pockets are provided on top for the wooden stick and at the bottom for the roller by using thick paper. The scroll is then lined with mulberry paper and left to dry over a drying board.
161.8 x 68.9 cm. The paper pieces are white, or off‐white, and the inks are predominantly black and red for the two seals. The decorated surface may be divided in three sections. The first is the main calligraphy part, which reads Basmallah (or Bismillah, which means ‘in the name of God, the most Graceful and most Merciful’, Figure 2d), written with black ink, and shapes a motif that could be considered to be inspired by a dragon. The second is the two red seals, one of which is square (figure 2b) and mentions the name of the artist (Kuai Qing), while the other is oval (Figure 2c) and presents a wish (Wan Gu Chang Chun, which literally means ‘living till thousands of ages as long as a forever spring season’ and can be inter‐ preted as ‘forever young’ or ‘ever‐lasting to a long life’). The third section of the decorated surface is a roughly written Arabic inscription, above the seal of the artist: “Written [by] Abd Eldhayeq [who was or which was] found at the sea” (Figure 2e). The scroll presented in this case study is a piece of a wider collection of Chinese Islamic scrolls belonging to the IAMM. This collection was kindly donated by Puan Sri Sharifah Zarah Al‐Bukhary, member of the board of directors of the Albukhary Foundation which funds the museum. Our infor‐ mation regarding the history of this particular collection is limited to some names of the artists and the date of their production (around 1950).
The IAMM Scroll History of the Scroll The object of this case study was most certainly used for decoration. This opinion can be sup‐ ported by the Malaysian Ministry of Culture, Arts & Tourism research on Muslim communities of China, on similar artworks [7]. It is composed of several pieces of different types of paper, including a central one which bears the calligraphy (Figure 2). The scroll dimensions before treatment were e‐conser vation
Once the scroll came under IAMM’s custody in 1998, it went through the standard procedure that applies to all new acquisitions. First, it was taken to a special quarantine room, known as the Handling Room, for observation. The time for this process differs, depending on the nature of the object. In this particular case, the scroll was examined for less than a week. The scroll was taken from the Handling Room directly to the museum exhibition halls as there 65
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Figure 2. The scroll before treatment: a) general view; b,c) red stamps with Chinese characters; d) crown shaped Basmallah (or Bismillah); e) rough Arabic inscription.
was no Conservation Department at that time. It was exhibited until the year 2000 at the China Gallery. This gallery was redesigned in 2003 which involved the rotation of some objects, including this scroll. The scroll remained in storage for more than nine years, when finally the conservation staff took the initiative to treat it. One of the reasons for choosing it was the availability of restoration materials at the laboratories, which matched the estimated needs of this particular object. 66
Examination When observing the condition of the scroll (Figure 2), it is easily assumed that the object was not given the appropriate attention when handled in the past, before it arrived to the museum. More� over, it was obvious that it was not kept under adequate conditions. The scroll was examined thoroughly and it was found that it was trimmed in the past, perhaps due to lack of storage space. The object suffered a number of tears and loose e�conser vation
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areas. The left and right edges and corners were weak and damaged. A blue strip of machine‐made paper applied along the edges was detached on several parts. A possible reason for attaching the blue paper could be for protecting the scroll edges. The scroll had two lining layers, one made of thin and the other of thick handmade paper. The thick one has long fibres. There was no indication of using silk for either layer. The object had lost its elasticity due to the paper fibres aging, which was accelerated by the lining paste. Dust and dirt embedded on the lining paper affected further the physical properties of the artefact. The lining quality is not excellent, which is the reason that it is assumed that the object was made at a work‐ shop with poor experience. Works of art on paper become more fragile with aging. Once the paper degrades it is difficult to restore back its flexibility by chemical treatment. In order to prevent the artwork from breaking into pieces, aqueous treatment and relining with more appropriate materials is usually recommended. One of the major aesthetic problems of the scroll is the extensive water stains. These stains ‘run’ all along from the top left to the lower left side. Its pattern leads us to the assumption that they might have occurred when the scroll was rolled. The most likely scenario is that water came in contact with one side of the object (either acci‐ dently or deliberately) and penetrated it forming a repetitive design of stains after a regular inter‐ val. Additional water stains were found as well at other places. There were also some stains of red ink. The paper was slightly acidic, with pH 6. Brown spots and other forms of discoloration, present on the centre left side of the Arabic characters, may have been caused by acidic activity. A solubi‐ lity spot test proved that the black ink was inso‐ luble in water while red ink was slightly soluble. e‐conser vation
Intervention Documentation The object was thoroughly documented before any action was taken. The IAMM standard docu‐ mentation form was completed and photographs were taken before, during, and after every treatment. Removal of the Old Backing Before the intervention, attention was given to the selection of the most appropriate materials for the treatment and the final display of the object. As this scroll was not originally mounted with silk, it was not considered to add it now. A thin sheet of polyethylene was adhered to the cleaned table top using water. The areas that contained red ink were fixed with 1% Paraloid B‐72 in acetone. The object was humidified carefully from both sides with a water sprayer and placed facing up. As the object was thin and fragile there was a risk that it would be torn if the thick backing paper was removed at this stage. For this reason, it was decided to provide a temporary lining to the entire surface with lens tissue paper (facing), using a weak solution of methyl cellulose (Figure 3). Afterwards, it was left to dry. The scroll was humidified from both sides by spraying it gently with distilled water and kept over a polyethylene sheet. Then, it was covered with another polythene sheet. Air bubbles and creases were removed using a sponge, which was slightly moisturized to slip with ease on the poly‐ ethylene. After some minutes, a small part of the object was exposed uncovering the polyethylene sheet. An attempt was made to remove the backing paper with forceps but without success. Therefore some more water was sprayed over the object and 67
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Figure 3. During the removal of the backing.
it was left for more time to soften the old adhesive. At the same time, the condition of inks was exami‐ ned by lifting the lowermost polyethylene sheet. Two layers of backing were removed carefully with a tweezers and a scalpel (Figure 3). Cleaning The scroll was placed over the washing table in a supine position. A solution was prepared with 80 parts of deionized water and 20 parts ethanol with a few drops of hydrogen peroxide and a few drops of ammonia (Figure 4). Hydrogen peroxide worked as a bleaching agent for the stains and was used ammonia to neutralize it [8]. The solution was applied on the paper and blotted after some time. This process was repeated twice until the stains were hardly visible. The object was rinsed with 68
deionised water. In order to make the object more durable its acidity was counterbalanced with calcium hydroxide solution (pH 8) resulting in a final pH was almost neutral. The scroll border was treated separately in a similar manner. To dry, it was kept between blotters in semi‐dry conditions, pressed under light weight. Relining Parts of the scroll borders were lined over the Japa‐ nese machine‐made tissue (9 g/m2) yellowish in colour using diluted Japanese wheat starch paste in order to give some strength. Japanese wheat starch paste is preferred due to its good physical properties and mould growth resistance. Follow‐ e‐conser vation
CHINESE ISLAMIC SCROLLS
Figure 4. Application of solution during the cleaning procedure.
ing the classic preparation technique, after cooking the paste was passed through a strainer to eliminate lumps and create a homogenous texture [9, 10].
order to provide equal thickness to the entire surface and to tone down the frame’s brightness. The blue strip was placed at its original place as it is considered part of the object’s history.
After relining, the scroll and its borders could be handled safely. To give the hanging scroll the desired length, a final lining of Japanese machine‐ made tissue (19 g/m2) was added. Thus, the scroll was lined on a long, single sheet of that tissue over the terylene cloth which was fixed over the working table. Japanese wheat starch paste was diluted with water to get the desired viscosity, and was used for relining (Figure 5). The facing tissue papers were then removed carefully. After drying, the pieces of the border were pasted back to their original place. A thin cream‐coloured Chinese paper was placed all around the object in
Drying
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The lined scroll was placed over a table for a total period of two months in order to allow all its components to set together in relation with the surrounding atmosphere. This period was required because of the different drying times of each type of paper and also the prevailing conditions. Repairing and Retouching The scroll’s missing parts were patched up using thin Japanese paper of a matching colour. Minor 69
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Figure 5. Removal of the polyethylene sheet after lining the scroll.
retouching was done on spots of missing ink with coloured pencils. Certain stains were also retouched for aesthetic improvement. The materials used to repair and to retouch the scroll can be easily removed with safety or even retreated. Finishing Touches A wooden stick was added to the top of the scroll and a roller with two wooden knobs at the lower part. The stick was flat at the front and semi‐circu‐ lar at the back. This is to make a small gap between the scroll and the wall allowing the air to circulate freely. 70
Storage The final step would be to exhibit the scroll (Figure 6) in IAMM’s China Gallery. However, that was not feasible at the moment since the exhibi‐ tion space devoted to Chinese Islamic scrolls is full. Therefore, the scroll will be exhibited when the gallery will be rearranged, or perhaps when the objects will be rotated. Until this decision is to be taken by the curatorial and display staff, the scroll should remain in storage. One of the most common forms of dete‐ rioration for Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan scrolls is creases or cracks from rolling [11], which meant e‐conser vation
CHINESE ISLAMIC SCROLLS
that a suitable solution had to be found. Our preference was to place it flat on a mount. Never‐ theless, this solution proved to be unpractical due to the large size of the object and also the lack of storage space. The best system for storing rolled scrolls is the Japanese system: it consists of a box and a rolling cylinder made of a seasoned, light and durable wood such as paulownia or kiri. The scroll’s edge is fixed in an ajar gap alongside the cylinder, and then it is rolled around it. The box includes two hollow semicircle ‘stands’ on its two interior sides. This is where the cylinder sides are fixed prevent‐ ing the scroll from laying on its own weight. Even though this method seems to be the most suitable, it proved to be economically unafford‐ able for the amount of Chinese Islamic scrolls there are in the collection. This includes the costs of buying and shipping the materials from Japan to Malaysia, plus potential implications at the customs office. Thus, an alternative solution had to be found. The solution came from our experienced box making staff. We would try to imitate the Japanese scroll boxes, making one from paper and cardboard (Figure 7). Our box had similar properties to the Japanese system in that it held the scroll safe from handling, light and vibrations. However, there is a possibility that our box does not meet the humidity buffering properties of the Japanese wooden boxes. This is a subject that must be inves‐ tigated in the near future. Conclusions Planning for conserving this object triggered the conservation staff to search more about the Chi‐ nese Islamic Scrolls’ history. This research provided a fascinating insight to their rather obscure past. e‐conser vation
Figure 6. General view of the scroll after treatment.
This article shows some of the scarce bibliogra‐ phical resources in English. Almost ten years ago, the museum followed the trend of ‘sandwiching’ the scrolls between two sheets of Perspex. However, when the conserva‐ tion department was established not only focused on their conservation, but also to their historical context. Therefore, the ‘scroll’ had to be on a scroll form for a better historical interpretation. This object was exceptional challenging for the conservation staff due to its dimensions. The 71
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References [1] A. G. Sakellariou, “The Fungus Trolley”, News in Conservation 18, IIC, June 2010, p. 3 [2] L. De Guise, Introduction, IAMM website, 2009, URL (accessed 05.06.2011) Figure 7. The concept (above) and implementation of the storage box.
[3] J. Berlie, Islam in China: Hui and Uyghurs, Lotus, Bangkok, 2004, p. 1
conservation staff handling skills were tested, especially when the scroll was wet. The object had been quite acidic, weak and fragile. Particular attention had to be addressed to remove the hard ‘glue dipped’ backing without damaging the painted surface. A temporary lining from the front side with lens tissue paper (facing) protected the painted paper. Finally, the choice of materials and methods was also tested and proven suitable after observing it for 4 months.
[4] M. Dillon, ”Language and the Hui”, The Hui of China, Curzon, Richmond Surrey, 1999, pp. 153‐ 161
Generally, there has been little attention given to Islamic Chinese scrolls by conservation experts and researchers. With this article, we hope to contribute to a corpus of understanding for this distinctive artistic expression which brings together the Art from East and West.
[7] “Chinese Muslim Calligraphy”, Muslim in China (English‐Malay version), The Malaysian Ministry of Culture, Kuala Lumpur, 2003, pp. 33‐37
[5] Y. Liu Baojun, A Glance at the Chinese Muslims, Malaysian Encyclopedia Centre, Kuala Lumpur, 1998 [6] J. Hough, Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Scrolls and Mounting: Introduction to Chinese Mounting & Scrolls, URL (accessed 06.10.2008)
[8] O. P. Agrawal, M. Barkeshli, “5.2.3 Aqueous Cleaning”, Conservation of Books, Manuscripts and Paper Documents, INTACH, Lucknow, 1997
Acknowledgments The authors of this article would like to thank to Mrs. Britt Spyrou for the English editing, curator Rosmawati Ahmad Zakharia for the archival infor‐ mation, researcher Assim Quisho for reading the Arabic inscription, and the Deputy director of Centre for Malaysian‐Chinese Studies Chiam Yan Tuan for reading the Chinese seals. We acknowl‐ edge Pauline Webber for providing notes on re‐ mounting and restoration of Chinese paintings. We also thank the Director of IAMM, Tuan Syed Mohammad Albukhary, for his ample support. 72
[9] G. Harrison, Wheat Starch Paste, Indiana Uni‐ versity Libraries Preservation Department, URL (accessed 20.06.2011) [10] N. Ash, “A Note on the Use of Magnesium Bi‐ carbonate in Hydrogen Peroxide Solutions”, The Book and Paper Group Annual 2, AIC, 1983, URL (accessed 08.06.2011) [11] N. Yosiyuki, “Maintenance of East Asian Painting”, The Book and Paper Group Annual 12, AIC, 1993, p. 3, URL (accessed 08.06.2011) e‐conser vation
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ARISTOTELES SAKELLARIOU Senior Preventive Conservator Contact: a.g.sakellariou@gmail.com Aristoteles Georgios Sakellariou has been Head of Conservation at the Islamic Arts Museum of Malay‐ sia for the past two years. He has an MA in Preven‐ tive Conservation from Northumbria University, UK and a BA Hons in Conservation and Restoration from the University of Lincoln, UK. He worked as site conservator and as freelance conservation con‐ sultant for the University of Athens, the Hellenic Museum of Folklore Art and the Hellenic Society of Near Eastern Studies. He managed large projects for the Jordanian Ministry of Culture, and the Minis‐ try of Tourism of Oman. His interest and research include strategies for the storage and display of objects in their original or historic context.
trained in Paper conservation at India and abroad. Previously, he worked for several years as a senior paper conservator and project coordinator at the conservation laboratory of Rampur Raza Library, Rampur (India) under INTACH ICI project. His past experience includes working as a Senior Paper Conservator for Ossian’s Connoisseurs of Art, New Delhi. He joined the Conservation and Research Laboratories of IAMM, Malaysia in 2003. He has restored several Chinese scrolls, Quran Manu‐ scripts, Miniature Paintings. One of his most chal‐ lenging projects was the treatment of a 700 pages ‘Shahnameh’, an illustrated Persian manuscript by Firdaus. During his 18 years long carrier in paper conservation he had restored hundreds of arti‐ facts on paper.
SITI YUHAINIZAR Conservator Contact: yuhainizar@iamm.org.my
LALIT KUMAR PATHAK Senior Conservator Contact: lalit@iamm.org.my Lalit Kumar Pathak holds a BSc in Chemistry, a MSc in Geology and a Diploma in Museology. He e‐conser vation
Siti Yuhainizar Mohd Ismail received her BSc Science in Information Management (Hons) specialised in Record Management, in University Technology MARA Malaysia (2005). In her studies, she focused on Preservation of Archival Materials. She has received extensive training in paper con‐ servation from conservation masters at the Con‐ servation and Research Laboratories, Islamic Art Museum, Malaysia, where she currently works. In 2005 she was hired as a trainee conservator and then promoted to Assistant Paper Conservator. 73
CONSERVATION INTERVENTION OF VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURES: TWO CASE STUDIES IN CALABRIA, ITALY
By Alessia Bianco
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURES IN CALABRIA
The paper presents a reflection on the relationship between “innovative restoration” and “conservative preservation” regarding two cases of vernacular buildings in Calabria, southern Italy. The first case concerns the supervision of planning activities related to the restoration, reuse and development project of the historic center of Calanna. The variety and articulation of buildings undergoing restoration was an opportunity for a reflection about decision making concerning technical decisions of restoration and it has highlighted how often it is not possible to purpose interventions inspired by an unique theoretical approach (using traditional technics or using innovative materials and so on), but sometimes it is needed to prefer an pragmatic mediation, free by cultural ties. The second case pertains to an experience of the participating planning of a restoration intervention of Church of St. John the Baptist in Scilla, a prefabricated wooden building, built after the 1908 earthquake. The project’s preliminary draft proposed a substantial change of its technical and structural characteristics, although a second version was prepared to pursue several primary conservative instances.
A Theoretical Approach on “Innovative Restoration” and “Conservative Preservation” Without wanting to go into the difficult and spe‐ cialized topic of restoration theory, the article proposes two different approaches to restoration matter, with a reflection in terms of balancing the theoretical and pragmatic judgments [1‐2]. The first applicative case regards Calanna and it represents a type of restoration that can be called "case‐by‐case restoration", which is implemented according to previously established guidelines with‐ out following a certain methodological approach, but choosing reasonably adequate solutions to spe‐ cific needs. This approach is valuable in its ability overcome ideological approaches although has the risk of devaluing the restoration, depriving it of its intellectual and technical character. Hence, the difficult choices of the Calanna project (Figure 1) initially met some planner’s resistance who, due to their training and professional practice, in a first phase of preliminary project purposed to use modern restoration solution than traditional ones, who instead were considered better by me thanks their capability to respect the structural and technologic identity of buildings. e‐conser vation
The second case, in Scilla, led to an approach that developed an intervention proposal that can be roughly defined as “innovative restoration” because it sought to follow a methodological preference for the use of structural and technical solutions related to the vocabulary of contempo‐ rary planning rather than founding solutions similar to the building historical specificities [3]. Thus, “innovative restoration” may be defined as a theoretical and practical approach that prefers the use of materials and technologies homologous to those in use in new buildings. The proposed project was significantly reformu‐ lated according to a cultural orientation called “conservative preservation” and based on the teachings of Professor Antonino Giuffré [4]. This has been commonly practiced in the last two decades and turned to combination and satisfac‐ tion of safety, especially in terms of performance in case of earthquake, and preservation of the characteristics of historical buildings. Here, “conservative preservation” can be defined as a theoretical and practical approach that prefers using materials and technologies homologous to those in use in the specific building or monument in intervention.
75
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caused by the lack of maintenance and inadequacy of certain interventions made after the 1908 earthquake. An initial project included abusive interventions such as a concrete curb at the top, armed walls, large reconstructions of masonry, completely ignoring the building intrinsic structu‐ ral value. This treatment could have led not only to behavioural and structural damages that are typical of this type of solution but also to an increase of the hygrothermal discomfort condi‐ tions, specifically considering Calanna’s climatic context characterized by hard winters. Figure 1. General view of Calanna.
Case I: The Historic Centre of Calanna The project for the architectural restoration of the historic centre of Calanna included a reconversion of four buildings for touristic use, selected on bureaucratic and administrative basis such as the centre commercial perspectives and development strategy [5]. Following these criteria, the buildings were selected regardless of their architectural or conservation state similarities. Due to this type of heterogeneous selection, the strategies for their restoration were also adjusted to their necessity following a "case‐by‐case restoration". The first two buildings, the Lazzaro‐Romeo house and Musicò house, were not so relevant from the architectural point of view or conservation state. In this cases, the restoration solutions were equi‐ valent to those related to the specific local tech‐ nology such as, for example the replacement of deteriorated brick‐cement floors with wooden ones and re‐roofing. A more complex and hard‐fought task was the choice of solutions for the Barillà‐ Provenzano house (Figure 2), which showed some architectural interests and the worst conservation state, largely due to material decay problems 76
Therefore, it was necessary to prove throughout an exhaustive study the inadequacy of this approach. A significant support for this assessment, meant to point out the structural resources of this house, came from the Municipality of Calanna, which commissioned a rigorous in situ diagnosis and testing. The aim of the investigations was to collect scien‐ tific data for understanding the conservation state and the structural technology, especially concerning the masonry in order to change the previous inadequate intervention proposal of using detrimental cement injections in favour of traditional interventions with diatonics. Therefore, a protocol for extensive investigations, such as passive thermograms, sonic and ultrasonic tests, was prepared. A general and detailed thermogra‐ phic analysis (Figure 3) was performed only on two accessible sides of the building and did not show any specific thermal anomalies. In fact, it was detected no particular material decay of stones, bricks or mortars, but a significant presence of rising damp (within 1 m in the lower part), capil‐ lary (in walls in contact with the ground) and water infiltration (at the top). After the first investigations, a simple restoration treatment had already been justified. Remaking e‐conser vation
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURES IN CALABRIA
Figure 2. Barillà‐Provenzano house, Calanna.
the mortar from the masonry joints, which was friable as a result of high humidity, creating an air space and insulation of walls at the ground level, re‐roofing and rainwater regimentation system were the final proposed interventions. The sonic and ultrasonic tests, located in different and representative points of the building (angled wall tracks near the openings), showed no signi‐ ficant anormalities or the presence of inconsisten‐ cies between the paramental walls and the inner organization; moreover the endoscopic investiga‐ tion did not show cavity and inner cores. In this way we concluded that the masonry have not spe‐ cific and relevant problems, in terms of techno‐ logical characteristic and of conservative condi‐ tions; so it was possible to exclude the hypothesis to have to realization of expensive interventions as concrete injections and reinforced plasters.
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Furthermore, sonic and ultrasonic analysis carried out on the wall corners confirmed the existence of cracks, highlighting the lack of angle connec‐ tions. For further confirmation of the non‐invasive analysis results, some few specific endoscopies (Figure 4) were performed, which confirmed the corners structural problems. So, to solve this weak‐ ness, it was suggested the creation of a brick diato‐ nic in breach, affixing a system of chaining and disassembly and reassembly of two corners of walls. Finally, SONREB tests performed on concrete ele‐ ments made after the 1908 earthquake (Figure 5) [6] highlighted for windows a particular technolo‐ gical constructive problem of reinforced concrete lintels and balconies (consisting in a not adequate disposition of principal iron bars) and a serious deterioration by oxidation. The complete replace‐ ment of these concrete elements (lintels, balco‐ nies, etc.) was recommended. 77
ALESSIA BIANCO
Figure 3. Instrumental diagnostic investigation, thermography.
In conclusion, the analysis of the structural beha‐ vioural of the Barillà‐Provenzano house, which resulted in a series of qualitative and quantitative data, allowed the choice of the most appropriate conservative measures instead of other more innovative or abusive ones, with a clear advantage in terms of conservation and in reducing time, risks and costs of intervention. In this regard, it is interesting to note that making that simple diagnostic investigation (thermogra‐ phy‐SONREB‐endoscopy), with an investment of only €1.000, allowed a deduction of €20.000, which is about 40% of the intervention total cost and in a first phase assigned to realize interven‐ tions as cement injections and reinforced plasters, but after avoided thank the good results of diag‐ nostic investigation about the material and technological characteristics of masonry. So it was possible also to assign this saving for reuse activities, as furniture, equipment and so on. 78
The Barillà house (Figure 2) presents a certain importance in terms of construction technologies and typology, namely an arcade built with bricks and limestone, a wooden roof realized with two crossed layers, peculiar for this area. The house was in a poor conservation state induced by exten‐ sive demolition after the 1908 earthquake, followed by an incapable intervention and ultimately by a long abandonment. For these reasons, the material point of the Barillà house is so compromised that a project aimed to propose its reconfiguration risks to produce an alteration of its identity and to realize a false. So, after a long consideration of different design options the planning group decided to proceed with the demolition and reconstruction with the suggestion to use new building elements largely inspired by the Barilla house, in terms of functional design, formal distribution, and volumetric proportion, and to ensure good compatibility with the traditional architectures from its surroundings. e‐conser vation
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vation, protection and enhancement of the cultural and historical heritage of Scilla. The wooden Church of St. John the Baptist belongs to a set of British prefabricated wooden churches, donated in occasion of the 1908 earthquake by Pope Pius X in July 1909 and assembled in site by local workers [8]. The Church, however, has some distinctive features from the others: first, because assuming a planimetric shape, both the body and Latin cross are characterized by a significant size and form, and second because having been made to replace the baroque Church of St. John, which was severely damaged by the earthquake, has inherited a part of its artistic heritage, such as a wooden statue and a painting of St. John, an altarpiece, and a wooden statue of St. Anthony of Padua (Figures 6‐8).
Figure 4. Instrumental diagnostic investigation, endoscopy.
This choice produced an advantage in terms of costs, with 15% savings. However, it must be said that this case is rather unusual and attributable to the very bad conservation and structural condition of the building. In fact, from the economic point of view the conservation is usually presents more advantages than the demolition‐reconstruction [7]. Case II: The Wooden Church of St. John the Baptist in Scilla The restoration project of the Church of St. John the Baptist in the district of San Giorgio in Scilla is part of a wider research and scientific consulting project that the PAU (Patrimonio Architettonico ed Urbanistico) Department of the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria is making for the Mary Immaculate’s Parish of Scilla, for the conser‐ e‐conser vation
The church did not suffer significant functional changes and represents an interesting testimony of the post‐1908 wooden church typology. How‐ ever, the Church was built according to a braced wooden framed, internally coated with wood and externally with British sheet (manufactured by Ewart & Son , London 1834), as proved by the stamps still existing in the metal sheet covers and labelled rivets from a metal chimney roof ventilation. Nevertheless, the building suffered some interventions in the early 70s, such as the renovation of the facade, demolition of the wooden coat, reconstruction of a side access, and some internal changes following the requirements of Vatican II to move the altar piece from its existing position at the left wall to the centre of the apse. The conservation state of the Church was good enough to be still functional. The building presented material decay due to the rotting of the wooden frame elements, particularly in the more exposed portions, such as the feet, which being in contact with the foundation presented a high percentage 79
ALESSIA BIANCO
Figure 5. Instrumental diagnostic investigation, Schmidt hammer.
Figure 6. Outside view of the Church of St. John the Baptist.
of rising damp. At the upper level, improper regi‐ mentation of rainwater led to a spread deterio‐ ration of the roof and cornices. These moisture conditions together with the poor maintenance of the Church favoured xylophagous attack making necessary the conservation interventions for re‐ establishing the building structural security.
scientific and academic world to dialogue with professional one.
The preliminary project draft suggested the re‐ building of the whole wooden frame structure with a laminated timber frame, consolidation of the foundation with reinforced concrete, overlap‐ ping the original masonry foundation and roofing with laminated wooden trusses, preserving the wooden flooring planks, wooden lining and exte‐ rior metal sheet (Figure 7). The estimated cost, including the works, inspections and investiga‐ tions, technical and administrative costs, and VAT led to a quantification of just under €113.000. The involvement of the PAU (Patrimonio Architet‐ tonico ed Urbanistico) Department offered the consultancy to prepare a project not to replace the planners but to help finding the best solutions. This approach has two goals: diffusing in profes‐ sionals and technicians the culture of “conser‐ vative preservation” against an aprioristic “inno‐ vative restoration”; improving capability of 80
The final project presented a possibility of explo‐ ring a different option aimed to the conservation of the technical construction and preservation of the building’s original materials, recognizing the value of the original wooden framed system con‐ struction. The project planned the replacement of significantly deteriorated that affected the struc‐ tural and functional performance of the structure, as well as proposed small local improvements (Fig. 9). The calculation of the project budget involved some effort considering the fact that given the specific technology of this Church, many of the processes envisaged do not include restoration works, and thus the need for new opinions to articulate and define the associated costs [9]. The budget calculation forecast that followed, even including works, inspections and investigations, technical and administrative costs, and VAT, lead to a quantification of just under €90.000, with a cost deduction of approximately more than 20% when compared to the preliminary design solution. In this specific case, it also was realized a para‐ metric cost analysis, concerning only a selection e‐conser vation
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURES IN CALABRIA
Figure 7. First restoration project of the Church of St. John the Baptist in Scilla by arch. Domenica Currò, September 2010.
of structural interventions (masonry consolida‐ tions, new roof and repairs of cracks), comparing the traditional solutions with the innovative solutions. We obtained the determination of the economic convenience of the first kind of inter‐ ventions, in accordance with a perception already gained in field of scientific research, but most common in the professional field, where it is still unjustifiably widespread the notion that restoration is more expensive in terms of costs, but also risks, execution time, etc., than conserva‐ tion [10]. Furthermore, a possibility of providing a debate between “conservative preservation” and “innovative restoration”, as well as qualitative aspects such as security and storage, compatibility and reversibility, which calculation of budget of a purely quantity is an element of great interest, as well as a decisive contribution in decision making. For this reason, it is determined to implement a participatory planning process for the conserva‐ tion of St. John the Baptist’s Church in Scilla, e‐conser vation
which involves a commission and the local com‐ munity that had already considered and accepted the first proposal project. However, the proposal for a conservative intervention has found an unexpected agreement among parties, a sign of consolidation of sensitivity to conservation, which finally seems to start coming in usual sense of community, perhaps more that in planners. Conclusions The case study of Calanna presented the connection between the diversity of the buildings undergoing conservation, and the decision making related to each technical choice. It has been highlighted how often a pragmatic approach to problems may reduce the risk of a poor approach to value the method, and can help in finding flexible solutions to overcame aprioristic ideological positions. In fact, although planning choice for the Barillà house may seem at odds, even jarring, with field 81
ALESSIA BIANCO
Acknowledgments
Figure 8. Inside view of the Church of St. John the Baptist.
efforts for other three buildings, a pragmatic and no ideological approach has led to opt for a solu‐ tion of demolition‐reconstruction, based on the “case–by‐case” principle. In this, decision‐making has played a key role for careful analysis of costs, associated with different intervention scenarios. This, even if it may not appear in first instance in accordance with orientation that preservation has primarily a cultural value, shows, that a theoretical approach may involve risk to disconnect with the world of planners, clients and administrative and technical institutions interested to value interven‐ tions on classified buildings, as in these cases, national heritage. In conclusion, both cases of Scilla and Calanna show how it is possible to pursue an ambition of collimation between conservative instances and professional ones, through an integrative approach of two aspects: critical analysis of real technolo‐ gical and conservative conditions of buildings; introduction of estimative economic evaluation as preliminary factor of choice. 82
LaborEst, the Laboratorio di Estimo e valutazione dei piani e dei progetti of PAU (Patrimonio Architet‐ tonico ed Urbanistico) Department from Mediter‐ ranea University of Reggio Calabria, is conducting the consultancy projects of ‘Calanna’ case for the Municipality of Calanna and ‘Scilla’ for the Saint Mary Immaculate’s Parish of Scilla. The author thanks the Municipality of Calanna for its authori‐ zation to publish the image from figure 1. Figures 3 to 5 belong to the diagnostic research planned, conducted and validated by the SIS Section (Sezione Indagini in Situ) of MARe (Materiali ed Analisi per il Restauro) Laboratory of PAU Department from Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria. Finally, the author acknowledges arch. Domenica Currò for her authorization to publish figure 7.
References [1] M. Andaloro, La teoria del restauro nel Novecento da Riegl a Brandi, International Conference, Viterbo, 12‐15 November 2003, Nardini, Firenze, 2006 [2] C. Brandi, Il restauro: teoria e pratica 1939‐1986, Editori Riuniti, Roma,2005 [3] A. M. Racheli, Restauro e architettura : teoria e critica del restauro architettonico e urbano dal XVIII al XXI secolo, Gangemi, Roma, 2007 [4] C. F. Carocci, C. Tocci, Leggendo il libro delle antiche architetture: aspetti statici del restauro. Saggi 1985‐1997 / Antonino Giuffre, Gangemi, Roma, 2010 [5] P. Cimino Ranieri, Calanna e la sua pretura, Ceruso, Reggio Calabria, 1891 e‐conser vation
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURES IN CALABRIA
[6] S. Valtieri (ed.), 28 dicembre 1908. La Grande Ricostruzione dopo il terremoto del 1908 nell'area dello Stretto, CLEAR, Roma, 2008 [7] L'innovazione per il restauro sostenibile [Mi‐ nistero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali, Direzione Generale per il bilancio e la programmazione economica, la promozione, la qualità e la stan‐ dardizzazione delle procedure], Edizioni MP Mirabilia, Roma, 2009 [8] A. Bianco, La casa baraccata: guida al pro‐ getto e al cantiere di restauro, Ginevra Bentivo‐ glio EditoriA, Roma, 2010 [9] La conservazione del patrimonio storico ed architettonico, metodi e strumenti: strategie di raccordo tra innovazione e tradizione delle tecniche sostenibili per il restauro ed il recupero degli edifici e della citta storica, Adda, Bari, 2007 [10] V. Ceradini, "Dalla ricostruzione breve di Reggio Calabria alla lunga distruzione della Reggio ricostruita", in VARIA, Il Secolo Breve Rovine e Ricostruzione, CsA, Reggio Calabria, 2009, pp. 30‐31
ALESSIA BIANCO Architect Contact: alessia.bianco@unric.it
Figure 9. Some drawings of the final project.
e‐conser vation
Alessia Bianco holds a degree in Conservation of Architecture and a PhD in Architectural Conservation. She is a research fellow at the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria, Italy.
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