Science and spectroscopy of cultural artifacts

文物为文明提供了我们过去的历史和艺术记录。文物包括绘画、档案文件和博物馆物品，这些物品通常是用各种各样的技术和材料制成的。在制定保护或处理策略之前，通常需要对人工制品进行评估。人工制品的评估可以像目视检查一样简单，也可以涉及复杂的仪器技术。该研究计划致力于开发和应用仪器技术，可用于协助保护科学家评估特定的人工制品。该研究计划分为三个领域，涉及：微取样，多光谱成像和调查色素降解机制。微量取样项目涉及测试使用干棉签从各种绘画表面（例如绘画、地图）提取少量颜料的可行性。颜料提取最重要的应用是识别颜料中使用的金属，由于历史上大多数重要的颜料都含有金属，这种方法非常适合识别艺术家使用的颜料。多光谱成像实验将针对含有印刷品的文物，这些文物由于自然老化而褪色或难以阅读。具体的文物，将审查包括桶顶以及印刷材料从马尼托巴档案馆在温尼伯。本研究的一部分还将集中在数学方法的应用，以提高褪色文本的可读性。文物老化的一个症状是外观的变化，如变暗。颜料变暗可能由于许多原因而发生，例如存在不相容的颜料或储存条件。此外，亦会利用实验室配制的颜料，在显微镜载玻片上进行研究，以探讨某些颜料的降解机制。红外线和可见光光谱将用于检查颜料立德粉和含砷颜料雄黄和雌黄中发生的结构和物理变化。

Cultural artifacts provide civilization with a historic and artistic record of our past. Cultural artifacts include paintings, archived documents and museum objects that are often made with a very wide variety of techniques and materials. Prior to developing a strategy for conservation or treatment, assessment of the artifact is generally required. Assessment of an artifact can be as simple as a visual inspection or it can involve sophisticated instrumental techniques. This research program is dedicated to the development and application of instrumental techniques that can be used for assisting the conservation scientist in the assessment of a specific artifact. The research program is divided into three areas involving: micro-sampling, multi-spectral imaging and investigating the mechanisms of pigment degradation. The micro-sampling project involves testing the feasibility of using a dry cotton bud for extracting a small amount of pigment from various painted surfaces (e.g. paintings, maps). The most important application for pigment extraction is to identify the metals used in the pigment and since most historically important pigment contain metals, this approach is ideal for identifiying pigments used by artists. Multi-spectral imaging experiments will be directed at artifacts that contain print, which has become faded or difficult to read as a result of natural aging. Specific artifacts that will be examined include a barrel top as well as printed material from the Manitoba Archives in Winnipeg. Part of this research will also focus on the application of mathematical approaches to enhance the readability of faded text. One symptom of ageing of cultural artifacts is a change in appearance such as darkening. Pigment darkening may occur for a number of reasons such as the presence of incompatible pigments or storage conditions. Studies will also be carried out using laboratory prepared paints on microscope slides to investigate the mechanism of degradation of some pigments. Infrared and visible spectroscopy will be used to examine structural and physical changes that occur in the pigments lithopone and the arsenic-containing pigments realgar and orpiment.