The study presents an old icon painted in egg tempera on lime wood, with a poor conservation condition and clogged dirt deposits. The icon is attributed to an anonymous painter of XIXth century and to the neo-classical style of painting....
moreThe study presents an old icon painted in egg tempera on lime wood, with a poor conservation
condition and clogged dirt deposits. The icon is attributed to an anonymous painter of XIXth century
and to the neo-classical style of painting. The painting layer was done with only a hand full
of pigments, earth colors that were often used in painting the icons from XVIIth to XIXth century
in Eastern Europe, that have Byzantine influences. Taking into consideration the nature and
the structure of the materials from the upper layers of the painting, affected by deposits of dirt
over time, a series of cleaning recipes were studied, using the so called cleaning tests with compatible
mixtures of different juices and infusion from indigenes plants, that were freshly done
and odorless. A low alkaline 95% ethyl alcohol solution, combined with a few drops of ammoniac
25%, was used as a reference system, due to its compatibility with the greasy deposits found on
the polychrome layer and on the wood. The cleaning capacity of the new systems used, in comparison
with the standard solution, was analyzed through modern analytical methods of evaluating the degree of cleaning, more exactly by means of visible and UV reflectography, CIE L*a*b* colorimetry by reflection assisted by SEM-EDX and IR spectroscopy.
