Application of non-destructive techniques case study: The Madonna del Latte

In the frame of a research project involving a private collection of artworks a panel painting representing the Nursing Madonna (Madonna del latte) was studied by means of scientific examination. The Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry (DCCI) of the University of Genoa carried out non-invasive exams using reflectance spectroscopy in the visible range (vis-RS), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and imaging analyses like infrared reflectography (IRR), false colour infrared, UV fluorescence (UVF) in order to better understand the painting technique, from the underdrawing to the artist's palette. Some of the most interesting results were a well-defined underdrawing, Cu-based pigments, cinnabar, yellow and brown ochre and a Cr-based pigment. The scientific analyses combined with historical information allow the hypothesis that the Madonna del latte was authored by the artist Baccio della Porta, in the early 16th century at the Tuscan School of St. Marco. © (2017) by the International Measurement Confederation (IMEKO)