Investigation of glazed pottery fragments (XIX century A. D.) from Agsu site (Azerbaijan) by XRF and Raman techniques

Abstract

In this study a multi-technique analysis was performed on the decorated surfaces of four ancient pottery fragments dated back XIX century A.D. withdrawn from the archaeological site of the medieval Agsu town, in Azerbaijan. During the last decade, the site underwent to an extensively archaeometric investigation by means of different non-destructive, or microdestructive, techniques. In this work we focused our attention on the characterization of the pigmenting agents and glazes at different spatial scales from elemental to microscopic domain by using portable and not-portable equipments. In particular, the elemental and molecular compositions were successfully determined by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. On one side, data deriving from portable instrument were compared with those previously obtained from not-portable approach, in view of future in situ investigations. On the other side, the overall obtained results appear crucial for the reconstruction of the production technology used by craftsman of the past.

Multi-Technique Diagnostic Investigation in View of the Restoration of “The Glory of St. Barbara” Painting by Mattia Preti

“…As far as the orange, yellow-orange, and yellow colors are concerned (points S3 S13, S24, S26, S27), Figure 6 shows a representative photomicrograph, together with corresponding µ-Raman spectrum, collected on a yellow-orange micro-fragment ( pled at point S13) of the painting. Based on a comparison with literature [23][24][25][26], the low-frequency contributions centered at ~252 cm −1 (A 1g ), ~288 cm −1 (E g ) and ~347 cm −1 (E g ) can be ascribed to the presence of vermilion (HgS), confirming our previous XRF and EPMA-EDS results. Such a compound, obtained by powdering the cinnabar mineral, assumed remarkable relevance as an artist's red paint since Roman times, sometimes combined with burnt sulfur, despite its high cost and toxicity.…”