Analytical investigations were aimed at providing the wall painting conservator with information ... more Analytical investigations were aimed at providing the wall painting conservator with information related to the painting materials’ constitution with particular reference to the identification of binding media, pigments and lime, and cement covering applied on the occasion of previous restoration interventions. Elemental, molecular spectroscopic (μFTIR, μRaman), and immunochemical methods applied directly on the paint cross-sections were used to characterize and spatially locate each paint component.
The current availability and the wide diffusion of ICT technologies are driving us into a scenari... more The current availability and the wide diffusion of ICT technologies are driving us into a scenario where objects and environments intelligence, together with their enhanced capabilities, can play a strategic role in different aspects and activities of our everyday life. A significant one is represented by the case of cultural heritage, where ICT-based strategies can be exploited to disseminate and communicate information about a specific piece of art or a specific historical site. Digital guides on mobile devices are already used during touristic visits in several museums and cultural institutions, but there is an additional and hidden treasure behind the scenes that could be discovered by the audience thanks to smart objects: understanding of the cultural heritage coming from diagnostic analyses. To reach this purpose, this paper presents a prototype of a digital Augmented Reality (AR) mobile app designed and developed for revealing scientific information about a specific historical and cultural site to a broader and non-specialized audience. The case study we took into account is the Koguryo tombs, located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula, characterized by painted tumuli with a fragile indoor environment and by difficult access.
Macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging in the mid-infrared region (2500-25000 nm/4000-400 ... more Macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging in the mid-infrared region (2500-25000 nm/4000-400 cm-1) are promising technologies in the field of analysis of cultural heritage. So far they have been successfully employed to study paintings and illuminated manuscripts, gathering important information on spatial distribution of artists’ materials. The present paper reports on the application of mid-infrared macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging to the study of artworks. For an exhaustive overview, instrumental details, working principles and image processing methods will be also presented and discussed.
The characterization of the complex, multilayer, and multimaterial structure of a painting is fun... more The characterization of the complex, multilayer, and multimaterial structure of a painting is fundamental for studying painting techniques and for authentication purposes. Immunological techniques taking advantage of the high specificity of antigen-antibody reactions are widely employed in bioanalytical and clinical chemistry and have also been proposed in the field of cultural heritage characterization, since they allow different proteins to be distinguished and their animal species source to be determined. In this field, fluorescence detection was employed, which is affected by aspecific autofluorescence of pigments and organic binding media. The combination of chemiluminescence (CL) imaging detection of enzyme-labeled antibodies with optical microscopy was demonstrated to allow simultaneous localization of target proteins with good spatial resolution, low background, high detectability. In this work we have developed a new ultrasensitive immunochemical procedure with CL detection for the identification and localization of two different proteins (ovalbumin and casein) present in binding media or varnishes, in small size (1-2 square mm) painting cross-sections . The immunological detection has been performed by means of specific primary antibodies, revealed by enzyme-labelled secondary antibodies and suitable CL substrates. To allow multiplexed analysis, two different enzymes were employed: horseradish peroxidase and alkaline phosphatase as labels for ovalbumin and casein, respectively. This method was optimized on standard samples, and then applied on real aged samples allowing the specific identification and localization of proteins in a paint cross-section with a resolution of 0.5 \ub5m (i.e., within the single painting layers). In the future different organic (drying oils, resins, etc.) components could be also simultaneously detected by employing specific antibodies labelled with different CL enzymes, or bioluminescence labels
Analytical investigations were aimed at providing the wall painting conservator with information ... more Analytical investigations were aimed at providing the wall painting conservator with information related to the painting materials’ constitution with particular reference to the identification of binding media, pigments and lime, and cement covering applied on the occasion of previous restoration interventions. Elemental, molecular spectroscopic (μFTIR, μRaman), and immunochemical methods applied directly on the paint cross-sections were used to characterize and spatially locate each paint component.
The current availability and the wide diffusion of ICT technologies are driving us into a scenari... more The current availability and the wide diffusion of ICT technologies are driving us into a scenario where objects and environments intelligence, together with their enhanced capabilities, can play a strategic role in different aspects and activities of our everyday life. A significant one is represented by the case of cultural heritage, where ICT-based strategies can be exploited to disseminate and communicate information about a specific piece of art or a specific historical site. Digital guides on mobile devices are already used during touristic visits in several museums and cultural institutions, but there is an additional and hidden treasure behind the scenes that could be discovered by the audience thanks to smart objects: understanding of the cultural heritage coming from diagnostic analyses. To reach this purpose, this paper presents a prototype of a digital Augmented Reality (AR) mobile app designed and developed for revealing scientific information about a specific historical and cultural site to a broader and non-specialized audience. The case study we took into account is the Koguryo tombs, located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula, characterized by painted tumuli with a fragile indoor environment and by difficult access.
Macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging in the mid-infrared region (2500-25000 nm/4000-400 ... more Macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging in the mid-infrared region (2500-25000 nm/4000-400 cm-1) are promising technologies in the field of analysis of cultural heritage. So far they have been successfully employed to study paintings and illuminated manuscripts, gathering important information on spatial distribution of artists’ materials. The present paper reports on the application of mid-infrared macroscopic mapping and hyperspectral imaging to the study of artworks. For an exhaustive overview, instrumental details, working principles and image processing methods will be also presented and discussed.
The characterization of the complex, multilayer, and multimaterial structure of a painting is fun... more The characterization of the complex, multilayer, and multimaterial structure of a painting is fundamental for studying painting techniques and for authentication purposes. Immunological techniques taking advantage of the high specificity of antigen-antibody reactions are widely employed in bioanalytical and clinical chemistry and have also been proposed in the field of cultural heritage characterization, since they allow different proteins to be distinguished and their animal species source to be determined. In this field, fluorescence detection was employed, which is affected by aspecific autofluorescence of pigments and organic binding media. The combination of chemiluminescence (CL) imaging detection of enzyme-labeled antibodies with optical microscopy was demonstrated to allow simultaneous localization of target proteins with good spatial resolution, low background, high detectability. In this work we have developed a new ultrasensitive immunochemical procedure with CL detection for the identification and localization of two different proteins (ovalbumin and casein) present in binding media or varnishes, in small size (1-2 square mm) painting cross-sections . The immunological detection has been performed by means of specific primary antibodies, revealed by enzyme-labelled secondary antibodies and suitable CL substrates. To allow multiplexed analysis, two different enzymes were employed: horseradish peroxidase and alkaline phosphatase as labels for ovalbumin and casein, respectively. This method was optimized on standard samples, and then applied on real aged samples allowing the specific identification and localization of proteins in a paint cross-section with a resolution of 0.5 \ub5m (i.e., within the single painting layers). In the future different organic (drying oils, resins, etc.) components could be also simultaneously detected by employing specific antibodies labelled with different CL enzymes, or bioluminescence labels
Uploads
Papers by Rocco Mazzeo