Analysis and structural characterization of pigments and materials used in Nicolae Grigorescu heritage paintings

• First exhaustive investigation of pigments and materials used by the famous Romanian painter Nicolae Grigorescu
• First XPS analysis performed on ultramarine samples taken from paintings surface layers
• First scientific paper that proves the use of natural ultramarine by a painter belonging to the impressionist school

The combination of various mobile, non-invasive techniques (IR reflectography technique, optical microscopy, XRF, Raman and NIR spectroscopies) and lab-based devices (FTIR and XPS spectroscopies, SEM-EDX microscopy) lead to the first exhaustive investigation of pigments and materials used by the famous Romanian painter Nicolae Grigorescu in three cultural heritage paintings. The study of a large number of spots and samples allowed a rigorous analysis and a far-reaching insight into his work.

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