Fiber optic reflectance spectroscopy and hyper-spectral image spectroscopy: two integrated techniques for the study of the Madonna dei Fusi

Reflectance spectroscopy supplies fundamental information for investigating art objects and diagnosing their state of conservation. Until recently, reflectance spectra could be measured only on samples taken from the art objects. Recent progresses in fiber optics reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) and image spectroscopy (IS) have made it possible, however, to perform non-invasive measurements. Moreover, the two techniques can supply data in large enough quantities as to make the use of sophisticated statistical methods significant for detecting variations due to ageing and degradation. FORS and IS are, in a sense, complementary techniques as the former provides information on single points, while the latter provides 2-D maps from which the reflectance spectrum of each pixel can be displayed. Both FORS and IS were applied in the case study on the Lansdowne version of the Madonna dei fusi (Madonna of the Yarnwinder). In particular, IS was realized by means of a hyper-spectral scanner recently assembled at the "Nello Carrara" Istituto di Fisica Applicata. The characteristics of the scanner are: 0.1 mm spatial sampling over a 1x1 m2 surface and ~1 nm spectral sampling in the wavelength range from 400 nm to 900 nm. The information provided by these two techniques was consistent with what supplied by the non-invasive techniques employed by the other teams participating in the case study, in particular as regards the pigments, the preparatory layer, the binding medium, and the previous restoration works.