Add like
Add dislike
Add to saved papers

Organic dyes in illuminated manuscripts: a unique cultural and historic record.

In this study, we successfully addressed the challenges posed by the identification of dyes in medieval illuminations. Brazilwood pigment lakes and orcein purple colours were unequivocally identified in illuminated manuscripts dated by art historians to be from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries and in the Fernão Vaz Dourado Atlas (sixteenth century). All three works were on a parchment support. This was possible by combining Raman microscopy and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy with microspectrofluorimetry. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that brazilein, the main chromophore in brazilwood lake pigments, has been unequivocally identified by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy in an illuminated work (the Dourado Atlas). Complementing this identification, through microspectrofluorimetry and micro-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, it was possible to propose a complete paint formulation by comparison with our database of references; the dark pink hues, in the three case studies, were produced by combining brazilwood pigment lakes and gypsum in a protein- and gum arabic-based tempera. Orcein purple, also known as orchil dye, has been previously identified in medieval manuscripts, dated from the sixth to the ninth centuries. Our findings in fourteenth-sixteenth century manuscripts confirm the hypothesis that this dye was lost during the High Middle Ages, to be later rediscovered.This article is part of the themed issue 'Raman spectroscopy in art and archaeology'.

Full text links

We have located links that may give you full text access.
Can't access the paper?
Try logging in through your university/institutional subscription. For a smoother one-click institutional access experience, please use our mobile app.

Related Resources

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

Mobile app image

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.

By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Your Privacy Choices Toggle icon

You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app