An extensive non‐destructive and micro‐spectroscopic study of two post‐Byzantine overpainted icons of the 16th century

Abstract This work is an extensive study of two post‐Byzantine icons, ‘Our Lady, the Life‐giving Spring’ and ‘Saint Athanasios the Athonite,’ both painted during the 16th century and now kept at Saint Modestos's Church in Kalamitsi, Chalkidiki, Greece. The icons were examined using non‐destructive and microanalytical techniques, namely fluorescence photography under UV light, x‐radiography and optical microscopy, in addition to micro‐Raman and micro‐Fourier transform IR spectroscopy. This study allowed the assessment of the current state of preservation of these icons, revealed prior damage and identified in detail the pigments and materials used in the original paintings and overpaintings. Moreover, it confirmed the usefulness of this approach to the detailed evaluation of icons in general and provided significant structural data on representative portable icons of Cretan‐style religious painting. The palette for the original paintings of the two icons consists of the natural pigments caput mortuum, yellow ochre, carbon black, azurite, green earth, cinnabar, white lead, red lake and copper resinate; egg yolk was used as the binder. By contrast, the rather elementary overpaintings are of low tonality, consisting predominantly of mixtures of minium and carbon black, and also the synthetic pigments ultramarine blue, “chrome green” (Prussian blue + lead chromate), chrome yellow and lithopone. A blend of linseed oil and egg provided the binder for the pigments used. The same artist is understood from art historians to have overpainted both icons at the beginning of the 20th century. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.