New methodology for the assessment of cleaning treatments. Applications of photogrammetry for restoration

The development of new technologies in recent years, together with their cost reduction, have fostered their use in different fields such as Cultural Heritage. Likewise, new software and easy accessibility, either through trial versions or due to open-source software, have endorsed their establishment as essential tools in our everyday life. In this paper, a new methodology based on photogrammetry is proposed for the assessment of cleaning treatments. A set of wall painting fragments was the subject of study. By generating and comparing the photogrammetric model of the fragment before and after the cleaning treatment, this methodology enabled to determine those areas in which the treatment had been more effective - thus removing a higher quantity of dirt - and, on the other hand, those areas in which the treatment had not performed well - and the surface had been left intact. Therefore, photogrammetry offers a low cost, portable and simple solution for objectively assessing the efficacy of a cleaning treatment.