Advanced NMR methodologies and micro-analytical techniques to investigate the stratigraphy and materials of 14th century Sienese wooden paintings

In situ measurements by portable NMR were performed to investigate the stratigraphy of the paintings in a non-destructive and non-invasive way. By means of this technique, information about all layers constituting the paintings were obtained and used to plan the successive micro-sampling. High resolution NMR spectroscopy was applied on a few samples to characterize binders and organic substances. Specifically, solid state 13C and 31P CPMAS NMR spectroscopy and 1H NMR spectroscopy in solution were applied to characterize original and non-original materials. Other techniques such as ToF-SIMS, HPLC, IR and Raman spectroscopy were also applied.