Chemical and mineralogical characteristics of the pigments of archaeological rupestrian paintings from the Salão dos Índios site, in Piauí, Brazil

Santos, Lívia Martins dos; Oliveira, Fabiana Matos de; Filho, Benedito Batista Farias; Fontes, Laiane de Moura; Lage, Maria Conceição Soares Meneses; Silva, Heralda Kelis Sousa Bezerra da; Cavalcante, Luís Carlos Duarte; Fabris, José Domingos

doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.01.035

Cited by 5 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Red and yellow pigments are typically associated with iron-oxide related minerals, specifically, hematite and goethite 23,24 . It is well known that, under heating, goethite dehydrates forming hematite, which has been shown to be initially formed as micro or nano domains.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Archaeometric Characterization of Ecuadorian Pottery

Polo

Briceño

Jamett

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

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Ecuadorian pottery is renowned for its beauty and the particularly rich colour of its pigments. However, a major challenge for art historians is the proper assessment of the provenance of individual pieces due to their lack of archaeological context. Of particular interest is the Jama-Coaque culture, which produced fascinating anthropomorphic and zoomorphic pottery from ca. 240 B.C. until the Spanish Conquest of 1532 A.D. in the coastal region of Ecuador. Using a combination of microscopic and spectroscopic techniques, i.e., transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM); we are able to characterize these pieces. We have found several kinds of iron-oxide based nanostructures in all the colour pigments we investigated for the Jama-Coaque culture, suggesting the same unique volcanic source material was used for their clay. Such nanostructures were absent from the pigment samples studied from other contemporary coastal-Ecuadorian cultures, i.e., the Tumaco-La Tolita and Bahía cultures. In the yellow pigments of goethite we find carbon nanofibres, indicating these pigments were subjected to a thermal treatment. Finally, in the blue, green, and black pigments we detect modern pigments (phthalocyanine blue, lithopone, and titanium white), suggesting modern restoration. Our results demonstrate the power of TEM, Raman, FTIR, EDX, and SEM archaeometric techniques for characterizing pieces without a clear archaeological context. Furthermore, the characterization of nanostructures present in such pieces could be used as a possible fingerprint for a provenance study.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Archaeometric Characterization of Ecuadorian Pottery

Polo

Briceño

Jamett

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

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“…Phosphorous (P) can also indicate the presence of alteration deposits, attributed to organic material from the decomposition of small-sized building insects or their excrements. 7,29 The occurrence of these deposits is quite common in open-air sites, as in the case of the archaeological Site of Ema, since they are more vulnerable to problems of natural origin. Perhaps, for this reason, the SE1901 sample presented the highest signal intensity for this element.…”

Section: Ed-xrfmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1,10 As a source of gypsum was not found nearby the site, the hypothesis that the rupestrian art was made from pigments based on this mineral and then taken to Ema Site by precolonial painters cannot be discarded, since they maintained a nomadic lifestyle (hunter-gatherers), and the Araripe sedimentary basin, rich in this mineral, is located just over 200 kilometers from the city of Inhuma. 30 Although the literature 1,17,29,31,32 indicates pyrolusite (MnO 2 ) as one of the substances responsible for the black coloration of natural mineral pigments, observed in some rupestrian paintings, this possibility was discarded, due to the absence of an analytical signal for manganese (Mn) in the sample SE1903. This suggests that this pigment may have been prepared from carbonized organic materials (bones or vegetables).…”

Section: Ed-xrfmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-Analytical Characterization of Rupestrian Precolonial Paintings of Inhuma, Piauí, Brazil

Moura¹,

Lage²,

Filho³

et al. 2023

J. Braz. Chem. Soc.

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The chemical-mineralogical characterization of rupestrian paintings in red, white, black and yellow colors, which decorate the rocky walls from the archaeological sites of Ema and Furna dos Índios (Inhuma, Piauí, Brazil) was performed. The chemical analyses were performed in situ by the non-invasive analytical technique X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) as well as in laboratory using a non-destructive approach, without previous sample preparation, and Raman microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) techniques. The results, when together, allowed unequivocal identification of the main substances responsible for the color pigments, namely, hematite (red pigment), gypsum (white pigment), amorphous carbon from charcoal (black pigment) and goethite (yellow pigment).

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“…Of the five frequency shifts, only one peak at 155 cm −1 was found in the KR1 sample. The Raman peaks at 397 and 413 cm −1 (dos Santos et al, 2018) were assigned to hematite, although phases of hematite were absent in the XRD. Hematite occurs in nature and can exist as impurities in the main pigment materials.…”

Section: Paint Layer (Pigment Samples)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Scientific study of the pigments and binders used in mural painting from the 16th‐centuryceSt Mary's Church of Cheriapally, Kottyam, Kerala, and its relevance to conservation

Sharma

Singh²,

Jangid

2022

Archaeometry

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The aim of this investigation was to analyze the materials and techniques of the paintings in the 16th-century ce St Mary's Church, to evaluate deterioration of the paintings, and to propose a suitable conservation treatment for their preservation. The material analysis of ground, pigments, binders, and plasters was undertaken using binocular microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in reflectance (KBr) and transmittance mode (attenuated total reflection), thin-film X-ray diffraction, and micro-Raman spectroscopy. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used for identifying proteinaceous and lipidic materials extracted from the micro-samples. The study generated data on two different red and green pigments used as decorative materials. The red pigments were identified as cinnabar along with traces of hematite and clay minerals, and green as malachite and the minor presence of other minerals. SEM analysis identified cotton fiber embedded in the coarse plaster layer that provided better strength to the plaster. Plant oils and proteins found as the binder in the pigment samples suggested that the painting technique was executed as tempera. Lead white and gypsum materials were used in previous restoration works.

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Chemical and mineralogical characteristics of the pigments of archaeological rupestrian paintings from the Salão dos Índios site, in Piauí, Brazil

Cited by 5 publications

References 16 publications

An Archaeometric Characterization of Ecuadorian Pottery

An Archaeometric Characterization of Ecuadorian Pottery

Multi-Analytical Characterization of Rupestrian Precolonial Paintings of Inhuma, Piauí, Brazil

Scientific study of the pigments and binders used in mural painting from the 16th‐centuryceSt Mary's Church of Cheriapally, Kottyam, Kerala, and its relevance to conservation

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