Non-invasive multitechnique methodology applied to the study of two XIV-Century Canvases by Lorenzo Veneziano

This paper presents the results of a multi-disciplinary study on two XIV century canvases attributed to Lorenzo Veneziano. In particular, two non-invasive spectroscopic techniques have been employed, imaging spectroscopy (IS) and X-ray Fluorescence (XRF). In order to perform the analysis in situ, the employed instruments were transportable. The purposes of this analytical approach were mainly to corroborate the authorship and to study the painting materials and execution technique of these two paintings. These two artworks are considered precious because they represent two evidences of the early use of the canvas support in this early period in the North of Italy. The paintings are in very delicate conditions. For this reason, the principal objective of the investigations was to gather as much information as possible avoiding invasive analytical procedures. The paper discusses the potentialities and limitations of the integration of a mobile XRF with a transportable IS device, specially developed to study large-sized surfaces. By means of the elemental composition given by XRF and the colourimetric data and reflectance spectra collected by IS, it has been possible to identify different painting materials (gypsum, azurite…) and to obtain a better understanding of the employed execution practise. The data confirm that the two canvases have been produced with painting materials and technique that are in good correspondence between them and that corroborate the authorship to Lorenzo Veneziano. The obtained results illustrate the suitability of the integration of XRF with IS to solve similar analytical issues when sampling is not possible.