Papers by Maria Francesca Alberghina
Remote Sensing
This study aims to assess the different decay phenomena affecting the Cosenza Cathedral façade (C... more This study aims to assess the different decay phenomena affecting the Cosenza Cathedral façade (Calabria, South Italy) through the evaluation of the relative damage indices. For this goal, a multidisciplinary approach was applied exploiting both nondestructive and microdestructive techniques. Such a combination enabled proposing an intervention priority scale that can be helpful to institutions when planning a prompt restoration intervention. The results suggest the efficiency of this approach to obtain a multidisciplinary diagnostic and conservation system for the management and valorization of the Cultural Heritage also in terms of monitoring, maintenance, and selection of the most suitable restoration procedures over time.
Heritage
This work presents the results of the in situ, non-invasive diagnostic investigations performed o... more This work presents the results of the in situ, non-invasive diagnostic investigations performed on the canvas oil painting depicting Madonna and Child, venerated as ‘Maria Santissima delle Grazie’ by the local religious community. The work of art (72 cm × 175 cm) is located on the high altar of the main Church in Mirabella Imbáccari, near Catania (Sicily, Italy). The painter is anonymous, and the supposed dating is the late eighteenth century. Although the painting has never been studied before, it has been attributed to a Sicilian workshop in the literature, raising the doubts of the art historian who conducted this study and who hypothesized a Neapolitan manufacture. Furthermore, due to the good conservation state detected by a macroscopic examination, doubts also arose about dating. To shed light on these aspects, a technical-scientific examination proved necessary. Multispectral imaging techniques (IR Reflectography, UV-induced visible Fluorescence, X-ray) are carried out for th...
Applied Sciences
The present paper discusses the importance of non-destructive and micro-destructive technology in... more The present paper discusses the importance of non-destructive and micro-destructive technology in forensic investigations in the field of cultural heritage. Recent technological developments and the wide availability of modern analytical instrumentation are creating new possibilities for performing scientific measurements and acquiring data directly on-site—thereby limiting, where possible, sampling activity—as well as learning about the technologies and materials that were employed in the past to create cultural assets. Information on periods, chemical composition, manufacturing techniques, etc., can be gathered more easily. Overall, the benefits of on-site forensic investigations are multiple, including the potential to increase substantially the speed and efficacy of the criminal justice system. However, such benefits are only realized when data quality is guaranteed and findings can be used as forensic evidence in court. The present paper shows data from the non-destructive and ...
PLOS ONE
The Tomb of the Diver has been subject for many decades of fierce debate among archaeologists and... more The Tomb of the Diver has been subject for many decades of fierce debate among archaeologists and classicists. Since its discovery in 1968, some scholars have considered it a unique example of the lost tradition of Greek painting, others have emphasized Etruscan or Italic parallels. More recently, a possible local production has been suggested. With the aim of trying to solve the archaeological question, an archaeometric comparison among this well-known artwork and several frescoed tombs coming from Hellenistic and Lucan necropolis was carried out. The multi-analytical study was focused on the identification of peculiar features of executive techniques and raw materials since the first period of the archaeological site. The analytical investigation has been preliminary based on a non-destructive approach, performed in-situ by portable equipment including imaging diagnostics and compositional spectroscopic techniques for identifying pigments and the conservation state of original painted surface; subsequently, a further deepening by using destructive techniques was performed in-lab for the mortar-based supports characterization. Archaeometric study suggested that technological choices slightly changed in a time span of about two centuries, highlighting important markers that allow clustering the contemporary artistic productions.
Heritage Science
The production of Japanese enamels for porcelain decoration was thought to have originated from t... more The production of Japanese enamels for porcelain decoration was thought to have originated from the direct and exclusive influence of Chinese potters who moved to Japan during the chaotic Ming to Qing dynastic change in 1644. Recent systematic studies have identified, for the first time, the crucial influence of Jesuit missionaries on pigment and enamel production in Japan from the late 16th-century. In particular, such first encounter laid the foundation for the continued influence exerted by European technology on Japanese art throughout the centuries. The present study has further identified European enamels used for the decoration of polychrome wares fired in Arita, the porcelain production center of Japan. This continued exchange not only marked the Edo period, but also extended into the twentieth century. For the first time, the lack of written records regarding the use of western pigments for enamel production caused by the persecutions of European and Japanese Christians has been overcome in the work herein presented. The nature of the imported materials has been firmly identified and characterized. The analytical results (EDXRF and Raman) have finally revealed how western technology and materials not only kept influencing Japanese art during the isolation (sakoku) period, but also accompanied the strong westernization process that marked Japanese history from the late nineteenth century. Moreover, the significant reverse influence of Japanese-made enamels on Chinese polychrome porcelain production in the late Qing and twentieth century has been fully identified for the first time. Furthermore, results show that the shift of the Pb mode of lead antimonate (Naples Yellow) is affected by the firing temperature for enamel decoration, and that this characteristic, along with the chemical composition, enables the identification of the origin and manufacture period of the yellow enamel.
Journal of Electronic Imaging 26(1), 011015 (Jan∕Feb 2017), 2017
, " Integrated three-dimensional models for noninvasive monitoring and valorization of the Morgan... more , " Integrated three-dimensional models for noninvasive monitoring and valorization of the Morgantina silver treasure (Sicily), " Abstract. The Morgantina silver treasure belonging to the Archaeological Museum of Aidone (Sicily) was involved in a three-dimensional (3-D) survey and diagnostics campaign for monitoring the collection over time in anticipation of their temporary transfer to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York for a period of 4 years. Using a multidisciplinary approach, a scientific and methodological protocol based on noninvasive techniques to achieve a complete and integrated knowledge of the precious items and their conservation state, as well as to increase their valorization, has been developed. All acquired data, i.e., 3-D models, ultraviolet fluorescence, x-ray images, and chemical information, will be made available, in an integrated way, within a web-oriented platform, which will present an in-progress tool to deepen existing archaeological knowledge and production technologies and to obtain referenced information of the conservation state before and after moving of the collection from its exposure site.
… Acta Part B: Atomic …, Jan 1, 2011
The investigations on structure and micro-chemical composition of archaeological metal alloys are... more The investigations on structure and micro-chemical composition of archaeological metal alloys are needed in archaeometry. The aim of this study is devoted both to acquire information about their provenance and production technology, and to improve our understanding about the corrosion processes. In this paper we present the study of the corrosion phenomena of bronze samples, laboratory-made according to binary, ternary and quaternary alloys typical of Roman archaeometallurgical production through an integrated methodology based on the use of non or micro invasive physical techniques. Among the analysed samples, two were artificially aged through burial in the archaeological site of Tharros, along the west coast of Sardinia (Italy). The corrosion products, typical of the bronzes in archaeological sites near the sea, have been characterized by non invasive and micro-destructive measurements. In particular, the corrosion patinas were examined through optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and microanalysis, X-ray fluorescence and laser ablation spectroscopy. The use of integrated technologies allowed us to determine both the elemental composition and surface morphology of the patina, highlighting the correlation between patina nature and chemical composition of the burial context. Moreover, data obtained by the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy along the depth profile on the samples, have yielded information about the stratigraphic layers of corrosion products and their growth. Finally, the depth profiles allowed us to verify both the chemical elements constituting the patina, the metal ions constituting the alloy and the occurrence of migration phenomena from bulk to the surface.
Journal of Cultural Heritage, 2013
Natural Product Research, 2016
The subject of this present work is a group of nine historical pictures shot in Palermo by the Si... more The subject of this present work is a group of nine historical pictures shot in Palermo by the Sicilian photographer E. Interguglielmi in 1912. They are nine matte-collodion prints mounted on the original cardboard supports and all of them show foxing stains affecting the paper surface. In order to characterise the chemical composition of the supports and investigate foxing spots, non-destructive and micro-destructive analysis were carried out. X-rays fluorescence (XRF) analysis was used to characterise the elemental composition of all the mounting boards, allowing a comparison between the foxing spots and non-affected areas. Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy was used to investigate the presence of lower atomic number elements, not detectable by XRF, while SEM imaging allowed the investigation of surface appearance and nature of original paper samples from the cardboards.
Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 2011
The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique is often used as atomic spectroscopic t... more The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique is often used as atomic spectroscopic technique for elemental analysis of materials. However, it presents some drawbacks that make an accurate quantitative analysis difficult. Since the plasma properties, such as spatial inhomogeneity and plume stoichiometry strongly depend on the experimental conditions, the measurements are less reproducible. In order to evaluate the measurement fluctuations, we
Most of the artworks constituting the collection of Renaissance statuary of Abatellis Palace in P... more Most of the artworks constituting the collection of Renaissance statuary of Abatellis Palace in Palermo (Sicily) show evidence of colour layers and fragments of gold foil that probably once covered the whole marble surface. The restoration of some of these statues has allowed to carry out archaeometric studies about the painting technique and to highlight the original materials and inclusion present on the precious marbles by two famous Italian sculptors of the Renaissance, Francesco Laurana and Antonello Gagini. The measurements have been performed in situ through the integrated use of two non-invasive techniques: visible fluorescence stimulated by ultraviolet light and X-ray fluorescence. The ultraviolet-induced fluorescence analysis has provided additional information on the conservation status of marble surfaces by differentiating the pictorial materials and highlighting the presence of gilding and pigment traces through their characteristic fluorescence response. The observation in ultraviolet light has been used as valuable guide for the identification of the significant points to be analysed by X-ray fluorescence to characterise the original materials. X-ray fluorescence measurements have cast light about their chemical composition and stratigraphical structure. Pictorial layers were identified: vermilion for red layers, blue pigment based on copper for blue layers and pure gold leaf for gilding layers.
O3A: Optics for Arts, Architecture, and Archaeology II, 2009
The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an applied physical technique that has shown, ... more The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an applied physical technique that has shown, in recent years, its great potential for rapid qualitative analysis of materials. The possibility to implement a portable instrument that perform LIBS analysis makes this technique particularly useful for in situ analysis in the field of cultural heritages. The aim of this work is to compare the results, obtained by LIBS measurements with X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) ones, on calcareous and refractory materials coming from the Greek-Roman theater of Taormina. Calibration curves for LIBS and XRF were obtained by measuring certified reference materials and using them as standards. LIBS measurements were performed with a new mobile instrument Modì (Mobile Double pulse Instrument for LIBS Analysis) that use an innovative experimental set-up, based on the use of two suitably retarded laser pulses that greatly improves the potential of this technique for accurate quantitative analysis. XRF analyses were performed with a portable instrument ArtTAX that use a collimated X-Ray beam equipped with a fluxing system of helium gas on the detection path to the aim to detect the lighter elements with a good accuracy. LIBS results have shown that this technique is highly subjected to the sample chemical and physical characteristics.
Spectrochimica Acta Part B: Atomic Spectroscopy, 2011
The investigations on structure and micro-chemical composition of archaeological metal alloys are... more The investigations on structure and micro-chemical composition of archaeological metal alloys are needed in archaeometry. The aim of this study is devoted both to acquire information about their provenance and production technology, and to improve our understanding about the corrosion processes. In this paper we present the study of the corrosion phenomena of bronze samples, laboratory-made according to binary, ternary and quaternary alloys typical of Roman archaeometallurgical production through an integrated methodology based on the use of non or micro invasive physical techniques. Among the analysed samples, two were artificially aged through burial in the archaeological site of Tharros, along the west coast of Sardinia (Italy). The corrosion products, typical of the bronzes in archaeological sites near the sea, have been characterized by non invasive and micro-destructive measurements. In particular, the corrosion patinas were examined through optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and microanalysis, X-ray fluorescence and laser ablation spectroscopy. The use of integrated technologies allowed us to determine both the elemental composition and surface morphology of the patina, highlighting the correlation between patina nature and chemical composition of the burial context. Moreover, data obtained by the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy along the depth profile on the samples, have yielded information about the stratigraphic layers of corrosion products and their growth. Finally, the depth profiles allowed us to verify both the chemical elements constituting the patina, the metal ions constituting the alloy and the occurrence of migration phenomena from bulk to the surface.
Journal of Cultural Heritage, 2013
Spectrophotometric and colorimetric data obtained during a measurement campaign aimed at supporti... more Spectrophotometric and colorimetric data obtained during a measurement campaign aimed at supporting the Roman "Villa del Casale" (Piazza Armerina, Sicily, Italy) conservation activities, are presented. Special attention was paid to the possible variation of the chromatic coordinates, possibly due to the interventions of cleaning, consolidation, and protection. Data have been analyzed by the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) statistical technique, with the attempt to investigate its role in data variability reduction and verify its effectiveness in interpreting the phenomena occurring on the mosaic surface of the Villa, through grouping the observations into homogenous clusters. Effectiveness in the use of the information provided by the spectrophotometric and colorimetric analyses is strongly related to the immediacy and ease of data reading by the restoration operators for whom the issues concerning the color measurement and its representation are often unfamiliar. This paper analyses data of different mosaic tesserae before/after the cleaning intervention and presents data clustering with PCA. This statistical technique has provided a synoptic scheme capable of improving data interpretation concerning the chromatic behavior of the materials. Moreover, the cluster distribution highlighted by the multivariate analysis made it possible to identify, more clearly, the parameters that mostly contribute to the chromatic shift and to monitor the behavior of variously colored tesserae.
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Papers by Maria Francesca Alberghina