TY - RPRT A1 - Hahn, Oliver A1 - Nehring, G. A1 - Freisitzer, R. A1 - Rabin, Ira T1 - A study on early european inks from St. Paul in lavanttal N2 - Typology of Inks Archives and museums around the world contain a vast number of manuscripts that were written in different inks: carbon inks, plant inks, iron-gall inks and mixed inks. Yet most archaeometric studies of manuscripts focus on the palette of pigments found in illuminated manuscripts whereas identification of the inks is still largely based on cultural-historical studies and visual inspections. One of the reasons of this disproportion in the studies can be explained by the properties of Raman spectroscopy, the technique of choice for identification of pigments. In contrast, this technique is only partially viable when dealing with organic colourants. Brown and Clark discuss these difficulties and the uncertainties of identification of iron-gall inks by Raman spectroscopy in their pioneering work on early medieval Anglo-Saxon manuscripts (K. Brown and R. Clark 2004). To facilitate instrumental analysis of inks, we have developed a protocol that starts with the identification of the inks type (Rabin et al. 2012) which doesn’t require complicated instrumentation and can be carried out by paleographers and codicologists. Three typological ink classes The black writing materials used in manuscript production in Antiquity und Middle Ages can be sorted in three typologically different ink classes: soot, plant and iron-gall. Soot ink is a fine dispersion of carbon pigments in a water soluble binding agent; plant-based ink consists of a solution of the tannins extracted from gallnuts or tree bark; iron-gall ink, is produced by mixing a soluble compound of iron (II) with gallic or tannic acid extracted from gallnuts or tree bark. Therefore, iron-gall ink presents a boundary case between solution and dispersion ink, in which a water-soluble preliminary stage oxidizes and evolves into a black, insoluble precipitate similar to the carbon pigments when the writing is exposed to air (Krekel 1999). The additional category of mixed inks, i.e. inks produced by addition of various metals to the soot inks or intentional mixing of iron-gall and soot - based inks started attracting scholarly attention only recently because their significance was established only a short while ago (Brun et al. 2016, Colini 2018, Nehring et al. 2021). We suggest that plant and mixed inks build a bridge from the carbon ink of Antiquity to the properly formulated iron-gall ink that became a standard black ink from the late Middle Ages to the 19th century when it gave way to modern inks. KW - Early european inks KW - Typology of Inks KW - Raman spectroscopy KW - Illuminated manuscripts KW - Archaeometric studies KW - Dispersion of carbon pigments PY - 2021 VL - 2021 SP - 56 EP - 75 PB - Gazette du livre médiéval CY - Paris AN - OPUS4-53844 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Steger, Simon A1 - Stege, H. A1 - Bretz, S. A1 - Hahn, Oliver T1 - A complementary spectroscopic approach for the non-invasive in-situ identification of synthetic organic pigments in modern reverse paintings on glass (1913–1946) N2 - This work addresses the identification of synthetic organic pigments (SOP) in eight modern reverse paintings on glass (1913–1946) by means of an in-situ multi-analytical approach. We combined the complementary properties of mobile Raman spectroscopy and diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) to overcome the main disadvantages of each method: extensive band overlapping in DRIFT spectra and fluorescence problems in Raman spectra. A collection of DRIFTS reference spectra enables a precise pigment identification by DRIFTS and establishes this method as a serious non-destructive alternative for the identification of SOP. The group of β-naphthol pigments yielded valuable results for both methods, whereas synthetic alizarin (PR83) was preferentially detected by DRIFTS. Finally, uncommon triaryl carbonium pigments and two azo group-based yellows were identified in the paintings by means of Raman spectroscopy. KW - Synthetic organic pigments KW - DRIFTS KW - Raman spectroscopy KW - Reverse glass painting PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2019.01.011 SN - 1296-2074 SN - 1778-3674 VL - 38 SP - 20 EP - 28 PB - Elsevier Masson SAS. AN - OPUS4-48008 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Steger, Simon A1 - Oesterle, D. A1 - Bretz, S. A1 - Frenzel, L. A1 - Stege, H. A1 - Winkelmeyer, I. A1 - Hahn, Oliver A1 - Geiger, G. T1 - Kandinsky’s fragile art: a multidisciplinary investigation of four early reverse glass paintings (1911–1914) by Wassily Kandinsky N2 - This work highlights the rediscovery of the technique of reverse glass painting by the artists of the “Blaue Reiter” collective in the early 20th-century and focusses particularly on the role of Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944). Kandinsky created more than 70 reverse paintings on glass and showed several of them in exhibitions together with paintings on canvas and cardboard, implying a coequal importance of these techniques. Four of his early (1911–1914) reverse glass paintings (Auferstehung, Allerheiligen II, Rudern, Apokalyptischer Reiter II) were selected for investigation and their iconography, painting techniques and painting materials were examined. Two paintings were executed on so-called cathedral glass, revealing a “hammered surface”, whereas Kandinsky used a corrugated glass panel for Rudern. A multi-analytical, non-invasive approach [X-ray fluorescence (XRF), diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS), VIS spectroscopy (VIS), Raman spectroscopy] was taken to identify the pigments and classify the binding media. The results reveal a broad palette of materials. Several pigments like lead white, zinc white, Strontium yellow, Prussian blue, viridian, cadmium yellow, ultramarine blue, cinnabar and carbon black were found in most of the four paintings. The use of the rare synthetic organic pigments PR60 and PB52 is discussed. In two works of art, cadmium carbonate is associated with cadmium yellow. The identification of aluminium foil along with tin foils in Rudern indicates an early use of this material for reverse glass paintings. KW - Reverse glass painting KW - Non-invasive analysis KW - Raman spectroscopy KW - DRIFTS PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-480075 DO - https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-019-0268-8 VL - 7 IS - 27 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - Springer AN - OPUS4-48007 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Steger, Simon A1 - Oesterle, D. A1 - Mayer, R. A1 - Hahn, Oliver A1 - Bretz, S. A1 - Geiger, G. T1 - First insights into Chinese reverse glass paintings gained by non-invasive spectroscopic analysis-tracing a cultural dialogue N2 - This work presents a technical investigation of two Chinese reverse glass paintings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. A multi-analytical, non-invasive approach (X-ray fluorescence (XRF), diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS), Raman spectroscopy) was used to identify the pigments and classify the binding media. The results reveal a combined use of traditional Chinese and imported European materials. Several pigments like cinnabar, lead white, orpiment, carbon black and copper-arsenic green (probably emerald green) were found in both paintings; red lead, artificial ultramarine blue, Prussian blue and ochre appear in at least one of the paintings. The proof of limewash (calcite and small amounts of portlandite) as a backing layer in Yingying and Hongniang indicates that clamshell white was also used for reverse glass paintings. Drying oil was classified as a binding media in most areas of both paintings. However, the orange background of The Archer yielded prominent bands of both proteinaceous and fatty binder. KW - Non-invasive analysis KW - Reverse glass painting KW - Pigment identification KW - DRIFTS KW - Raman spectroscopy PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-019-00799-3 SN - 1866-9557 SN - 1866-9565 VL - 11 IS - 8 SP - 4025 EP - 4034 PB - Springer AN - OPUS4-47364 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Nosnitsin, D. A1 - Kindzorra, Emanuel A1 - Hahn, Oliver A1 - Rabin, Ira T1 - A "study manuscript" from Qäqäma (Tagray, Ethiopia): Attempts at ink and parchment analysis N2 - The library of the remote monastery of Qäqäma Maryam Kidanä Mehrät in Däg'a Tämben (Tagray, North Ethiopia) was investigated by the team of the project Ethio-SPaRe in June and November 2012. A preliminary study of the library showed that the collection was extended and profoundly renovated in the nineteenth Century, in the course of the revival the monastery had during the reign of King Yohannas IV (1872-89). The shaping of the collection was apparently linked to the figure of the powerful abbot, Gäbrä Giyorgis, who donated dozens of books of diverse provenance, which he himself gathered or received as gifts.1 As the result, the extensive library contains a huge amount of information, but its heterogeneity poses a very serious challenge to the researcher. KW - X-ray fluorescence analysis KW - Raman spectroscopy KW - Manuscript studies PY - 2014 SN - 2078-3841 VL - 7 SP - 28 EP - 31 PB - ESF CY - Strasbourg AN - OPUS4-30864 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rabin, Ira A1 - Hahn, Oliver T1 - Characterization of the Dead Sea scrolls by advanced analytical techniques N2 - For many years after the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, text analysis and fragment attribution were the main concern of the scholars dealing with them. The uncertain archaeological provenance of a large part of the collection added difficulties to the already formidable task of sorting thousands of fragments. After 60 years of scholarly research the questions of origin, archaeological provenance and correct attribution of the fragments are still debated. To help address these questions we have developed a methodology suitable for the material studies of the scrolls using combinations of X-ray, FTIR and Raman techniques. On the one hand, an accurate characterization of the highly heterogeneous writing media of the Dead Sea Scrolls leads to a reliable reconstruction of their history and, thus, contributes significantly to the current debate. On the other hand, it provides new information on the production of ancient parchment towards the end of the Second Temple period, opening a new page in the historical study of technology. KW - Dead Sea scrolls KW - X-ray analysis KW - FTIR spectroscopy KW - Raman spectroscopy PY - 2013 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c3ay41076e SN - 1759-9660 SN - 1759-9679 VL - 5 IS - 18 SP - 4648 EP - 4654 PB - RSC Publ. CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-29820 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -