Applying the Techniques on Materials I

The knowledge of the composition of the natural dye mixtures gives hints on appropriate procedures for restoration strategies. Identification of the dyes used, the establishment of their biological source, how they have been prepared, how these historical textiles were made, can provide important information. The dyestuffs used up to nineteenth century were either of plant (weld, madder, indigo, etc.) or animal origin (cochineal, shellfish, etc.) and belonged to various chemical types, such as flavonoids (yellow), anthraquinones (red) and indigoids (blue and violet). In this study microsamples (19) were examined from 11 Mevlana’s kaftans, dervishs’ dresses and dated from the thirteenth cent…

Solid state NMR to characterize paper and parchment samples from a Sixteenth century book

In this chapter, a solid state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (ss-NMR) Study of sixteenth century book is reported. Cross polarization Magic Angle Spinning Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (13C(1H) CP MAS NMR) spectra of paper samples collected from the book, allowed us to obtain information on its state of conservation. The physico-chemical characterization of two parchment samples collected from the cover book was performed trough the evaluation of the changes in line width and intensity of signals in the spectra.

Solid state NMR

Cypress pollen: An unexpected major sensitizing agent in different regions of Italy

In this multicenter survey, we assessed the impact of sensitization to cypress in atopic patients in Italy and determined whether cypress pollen concentration changed over time.Allergists were required to collect the results of 100-200 consecutive skin prick tests (SPTs) performed during 2012. Seasonal symptoms were also recorded, as were airborne cypress pollen concentrations (data from the Italian Aerobiology Association) in 1998-2000 and 2010-2012.We examined 2258 atopic outpatients (56% females; age, 2-84 years) sensitized to at least 1 of the aeroallergens tested (Dermatophagoides species, grass, pellitory, olive, cypress, birch, Alternaria tenuis, and dog and cat dander). We found tha…