Diario del Compromiso de Caspe, 1412. Restauración y conservación de un documento manuscrito

El Diari del Compromis de Casp, es un valioso documento para la historia de la Corona de Aragon. En este articulo se expone el proceso y los criterios marcados para su restauracion. Los tratamientos comunes como el lavado, desacidificacion, reintegracion mecanica, etc. pueden modificar profunda e irreversiblemente las caracteristicas fisicas y quimicas de los materiales que forman el documento. Sabemos que su integridad contiene valores que trascienden el mero conjunto de elementos que lo conforman y que su alteracion puede afectar a la singularidad del documento; por tanto su preservacion es tan necesaria como la del resto de elementos, costura, encuadernacion, guardas, decoracion, etc. Po…

X-ray fluorescence investigation of gilded and enamelled silver: The case study of four medieval processional crosses from central Italy

Abstract The presence of multilayered structures is common in such cultural artefacts as paintings, corroded metals, objects that underwent a whatever form of surface qualification. One of the most usual and complete ways to investigate such structures is observing a cross section, which requires sampling. There are however situations where at least part of the stratigraphic information can be derived non-destructively: the literature shows that X-ray fluorescence (XRF) has frequently been used, in recent years, for this purpose, with special regard to paintings and gilded metals. Aim of this paper is to further explore the suitability of XRF-based techniques to characterise multilayered st…

Análisis de las colisiones elásticas entre nucleos de la capa S-d a energías próximas a la barrera de Coulomb

Identification of local and allochthonous flint artefacts from the Middle Paleolithic site Abrigo de la Quebrada (Chelva, Valencia, Spain) by macroscopic and physicochemical methods

Flint is a lithic material that can be worked to obtain sharp blades with conchoidal fractures characteristic of lithic tools as scrapers, hand axes and arrowheads. These artefacts represent the majority of the lithic material from the Palaeolithic sites worldwide, and it continued to be used during subsequent periods to manufacture some of the earliest tools used by man. One of the questions that archaeologists are keen to answer in relation to flint use and characterization is sourcing. Answering this question is important to reconstruct interaction networks of prehistoric cultures. Over the past years, a great variety of analytical methods have been applied to identify the sources of fli…

El plomo escrito del Tos Pelat (Moncada, Valencia)

The aim of this paper is to edit a new Iberian lead inscription found in Tos Pelat (Moncada, valencia). In spite of this fragmentary condition, its text is possibly signary with a sacred or votive function.

Ocher and cinnabar in the argaric funerary record

The known cases of Bronze Age Argaric stained skeletons found in the Southeast of the Iberian Peninsula, have been analysed. The various hypotheses proposed relating to the origin of these colorations have been evaluated in light of new data provided by SEM, XRD and RAMAN spectroscopic analysis carried out on five Argaric graves of Murcia and Alicante. The results have indicated the presence of ochre and cinnabar on some of the skeletons. Without discarding the possibility that both substances were used in dyeing fabrics, it is proposed that their main use was for face and body make-up, being higher the number of recorded cases on female skeletons compared to male.

Análisis mediante Fluorescencia de Rayos-X Dispersiva en Energía (EDXRF) de denarios de Adriano y el problema del enriquecimiento superficial en la moneda de plata

En este trabajo presentamos los resultados obtenidos en el análisis EDXRF de 50 denarios emitidos durante el reinado de Adriano (117-138 d.C.), a nombre del propio emperador, de la emperatriz Sabina, de Elio César y de Antonino César todos ellos pertenecen al tesoro de Llíria, compuesto por 5.990 mone- das de plata. Los valores obtenidos son elevados para el periodo cronológico acotado, los cuales están asocia- dos a un enriquecimiento en la superficie de la moneda. Las monedas pudieron haber estado sometidas a un enriquecimiento superficial, por lo que los usuarios percibirían básicamente su apariencia externa y sería muy difícil distinguir pequeñas alteraciones de la calidad de la aleación

Nuevos datos sobre el uso de materia colorante durante el Neolítico antiguo en las comarcas centrales valencianas

La caracterización mineralógica de materias colorantes procedentes de los yacimientos valencianos de la Cova de l'Or, la Cova de la Sarna y la Cova Fosca de la Vall d'Ebo demuestra el uso de dos tipos de materia colorante durante el Neolítico Antiguo: Hematites y Cinabrio. Las características y distribución geográfica de cada una de ellas nos remiten a dos estrategias distintas de obtención y. probablemente. de utilización de las mismas.

Análisis de la pintura mural de una domus excavada en el municipio romano de Lesera (la Moleta dels Frares, Forcall – Castelló).

En este trabajo se aborda la caracterización de los materiales empleados en pigmentos, preparaciones, morteros y molduras de la decoración mural de una domus excavada en la ciudad romana de Lesera (Forcall, Castellón). Los análisis elementales mediante EDXRF muestran la utilización de compuestos de hierro y compuestos de plomo en los pigmentos rojos; compuestos de hierro en los amarillos; negros de origen vegetal y blancos a base de compuestos de calcio. Los difractogramas XRD revelan el uso de calcita y cuarzo en las preparaciones del muro y de calcita en las molduras. Las estratigrafías de las muestras analizadas mediante SEM-EDS revelan una estructura de capas compuesta por un mortero ba…

A Unique Collection of Palaeolithic Painted Portable Art: Characterization of Red and Yellow Pigments from the Parpalló Cave (Spain).

In this work we analyze the pigments used in the decoration of red and yellow motifs present in the portable art of the Parpallo Cave (Gandia, Spain), one of the most important Palaeolithic sites in the Spanish Mediterranean region. Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (EDXRF) and spectrophotometry in the visible region (CIEL*a*b*color coordinates and spectral reflectance curves) were used to perform in situ fast analyses of the red and yellow motifs with portable equipment and to characterize their elemental composition and their colorimetric perception, respectively. According to the elemental composition, the intensity of the fluorescence iron signals in red and yellow motif…

Un disco-coraza de hierro de la Bastida de les Alcusses (moixent, valencia)

Se presenta un disco-coraza de hierro procedente del oppidum ibérico de la Bastida de les Alcusses documentado con motivo de la revisión completa de los hallazgos de las excavaciones realizadas entre 1928 y 1931. La pieza es una lámina seudocircular en cuyo perímetro se distribuyen unos pequeños remaches para suspender el disco a las correas de sujeción, realizadas probablemente en cuero. Después de presentar el disco y los resultados de las analíticas EDXRF que permiten identificar los metales utilizados en la producción del disco (hierro) y los remaches (plata y cobre), se analiza su contexto de hallazgo, se encuadra históricamente esta categoría de armamento defensivo. Finalmente, se int…

Non-destructive Approach to Multilayer Objects: XRF Analysis of Gilt and Enamelled Metals of the Medieval Cross of Rosciolo

Abstract The penetration of X-rays is usually a limitation to the application of XRF analysis to multilayered materials, however it is possible, by software tools based on the fundamental parameters method, to overcome this problem and estimate thickness and composition of each layer. The cross of Rosciolo is a significant example of multilayer object: it is made of a wood core with attached gilt silver sheets and decorated with enamels. Measurements were carried out in situ and the PyMCA software was employed. The values of gilding thickness, Au/Hg ratios and Cu content in the silver sheets, and enamel's composition are discussed.

New observations on a pottery fragment with incised deer from the Cova de l’Or (Beniarés, Alacant)

The red external surface of a vessel, decorated with an incised group of deer from Cova de l’Or, has been long considered characteristic of the application of the almagra technique. However, the results of the elemental analysis of this fragment, compared with the results of another vessel with almagra decoration from the same site, call into question the application of this technique in the first vessel. In addition, searching for parallels for the schematic incised motifs of the vessel, in both ceramic decorations and rock art, we have concluded that rather than deer the represented animals are hinds.

New observations on a pottery fragment with incised deer from the Cova de l’Or (Beniarés, Alacant)

The red external surface of a vessel, decorated with an incised group of deer from Cova de l’Or, has been long considered characteristic of the application of the almagra technique. However, the results of the elemental analysis of this fragment, compared with the results of another vessel with almagra decoration from the same site, call into question the application of this technique in the first vessel. In addition, searching for parallels for the schematic incised motifs of the vessel, in both ceramic decorations and rock art, we have concluded that rather than deer the represented animals are hinds.

A compositional analysis by energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence of Iberian copper-alloy votive figurines from southern Spain (fourth-third centuries BC)

Investigation of modern oil paints through a physico-chemical integrated approach. Emblematic cases from Valencia, Spain

Abstract The study and the characterisation of modern and contemporary oil paintings is still a challenging issue, in particular considering the significant changes in paint production across the 19th and 20th centuries. This paper presents the results of the first physico-chemical integrated study of the artistic materials used in six paintings from the School of Art and Higher Design of Valencia (Escola d'Art i Superior de Disseny, EASD-Valencia), artworks created between 1871 and 1943 by four famous Valencian artists: Salustiano Asenso Arozarena, Salvador Abril I Blasco, Enrique Navas Escuriet and Jose Bellver Delmas. A wide range of inorganic and organic compounds was identified through…