Diagnostics and Analytical Campaign as Support for the Restoration Activity of a 14th-Century Mural Painting Representing the Virgo Lactans
Author(s)
Date Issued
2025
Type
article
Volume
8
Issue
64
Start Page
1
End Page
26
Journal
Abstract
The restoration of medieval wall paintings often involves the combination of
heterogeneous techniques and materials considering their nature and period. One of the
many obstacles in the study of the restoration of these types of artifacts is the paucity of
sources that remain and the fragmentary nature of the paintings. As support, we can iden-
tify information about the modus operandi of the artists and artisans’ workshops that
were active in the medieval period. Such information can be derived from important trea-
tises - for example, Theophilus’ mid-12th-century treatise, the Diversarum artium Schedula,
and chapter XV of Cennino Cennini’s Book of Art. These all coincide with the paintings
presented in this paper, which represent the Virgo Lactans (or Madonna del Latte, Nursing
Virgin) and a likely pre-existing figure of a praying woman. The investigated wall paint-
ings are located in the porch of St. Andrew’s church, situated in the neighborhood of Pi-
anoscarano (Viterbo, Central Italy). The historical context and the execution technique of
the paintings were carefully studied, supported by a diagnostic and analytical campaign
carried out by means of hypercolorimetric multispectral imaging, spot X-ray fluorescence
spectroscopy using a portable instrument, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and
cross-section analysis. These analyses allowed us to characterize the original materials,
the stratigraphic sequence of the paintings, and the previous interventions applied to the
paintings’ layers, giving relevant data to support the recently concluded restoration
Project(s)
Materials characterization in cultural heritage