Nondestructive Analysis of Wall Paintings at Ostia Antica

Roman wall paintings at Ostia Antica were studied for the first time in situ in an integrated approach using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) depth profiling, portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and visible induced luminescence (VIL) in order to explore the materials used in their construction and gain insight into the evolution of the Roman painting technique over time. NMR revealed the signatures of covered wall paintings through details of the structure of the top painted mortar layers, and the loss of this information that can be encountered when paintings are detached from the wall for preservation purposes. XRF provided information about the pigment composition of the paintings, and VIL was used to identify Egyptian Blue. Egyptian Blue was only found in the earlier wall paintings studied dating from 1st century B.C.E. to the 1st century C.E. The pigment palette seems to become limited to iron-based pigments in the later paintings, whereas the palette of the earlier paintings appears to be more varied including mercury, lead, and copper-based pigments.

Roman Model-Books as a Resource for Digital Architectural Reconstructions

Upon examination of Roman landscape paintings preserved in situ and in museums of Naples and Rome, additional evidence has been found for the additive character of creation of imaginary landscapes as well as evidence for using standardized elements and whole scene compositions in Roman painting. This attitude is compared to the modern way of creating virtual landscapes—computer game level design and the process called “kitbashing”. I propose that both these processes share the same task to create a familiar landscape using a visual language understandable to its contemporary viewer, but also a very similar method of using predefined elements.

The Hanging Garlands of Pompeii: Mimetic Acts of Ancient Lived Religion

Roman painting is full of items associated with religious practice. Garlands, in particular, are found represented in Roman frescoes, often draped over different panels to enliven the painted surface with the semblance of abundant fresh flowers. There are indications, however, that in Roman domestic spaces, latrines, and streets, physical garlands were actually attached to the frescoes as votive offerings that mimic the painted garlands behind them. This paper considers how Roman paintings worked in tandem with garlands and other physical objects, and how Pompeiians engaged in mimetic acts. The two-dimensional painted surface depicting “mimetic votives” should be viewed within a three-dimensional space inhabited by people and objects. The mimetic act of hanging a garland was part of ancient lived religion, and, as such, enables us to examine past religious experiences, focusing on the individual and communication with the divine. The relationship between these various visual media would have created unique experiences in the daily lives of ancient Romans that are rarely considered today.

Towards a cultural biography of Roman painting

Using a term drawn from economic anthropology1 and pushing the boundaries of this type of analysis, I would like to describe an attempt to trace in time and space the roots of the technical, stylistic and iconographic know-how that gave form to Roman painting. Considering the fragmentary nature of the evidence at our disposal, the argumentation set forth here cannot follow a linear path containing various steps that can all be neatly demonstrated. I believe that the time is right, however, to tackle Roman painting — and particularly painting in the domestic setting — with more conviction. Although understanding the rôle and nature of the patrons and painters remains an objective that is still far off, it is probably worth investigating the traditions that enjoyed some level of continuity in Roman painting and the concrete ways and contexts in which the process unfolded. The aim is to achieve a deeper understanding of the rôle that this artistic technique played in a society that made ample use of it during a fundamental phase of its history. In the 1st c. B.C. and 1st c. A.D., in the brief period that saw the transition from Republic to Empire, the domestic ideology of Roman society found expression in a decorative system marked by a continuous stream of innovations with respect to themes, schemes and ornament that were adopted consistently by a broad spectrum of patrons. Indeed, beyond simply protecting and covering the walls of dwellings, figurative painting — especially of such a complex nature as we are dealing with here — added a wide range of elements which I believe it is useful to investigate.

Anonymous Renovators of Icons

This chapter begins by examining how two peripheral artworks of the Virgin of Loreto, the eighteenth-century wooden statue from the Moxos missions and the seventeenth-century Roman painting by Caravaggio, each tapped into outside streams of Marian art. The same impetus for transformation is observed for the original icon of the Madonna of Loreto at the Italian shrine. Updates to this icon were spurred by an awareness of the world outside Loreto. The chapter concludes with a return to the frontier, to Canada, to consider some significantly named but lesser known Huron women converts who contributed to Mary's global public image. Overall, these case studies of modifications to the Virgin of Loreto reflect what mattered to people on both sides of the Atlantic about Mary at this time: she was alien, yet she was accessible; she moved, and she could also be moved.

LING, Roger, Roman Painting. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.

LING, Roger, Roman Painting. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.

Portable in practice: investigations using portable instrumentation for materials analysis and mapping of decorated architectural surfaces in the tablinum of the House of the Bicentenary at Herculaneum

ABSTRACTThe conservation of the architectural surfaces in the tablinum of the House of the Bicentenary at the ancient Roman site of Herculaneum is a collaborative project of the Getty Conservation Institute, the Herculaneum Conservation Project and the Soprintendenza Pompeii. The tablinum was selected as a case study given the significance, beauty, and severe deterioration of its decorated surfaces. A multi-disciplinary team with a wide range of expertise, comprised of conservators, chemists, geo-physicists, engineers, and conservation scientists, worked in partnership across a number of institutions with the objective to study the wall paintings in the tablinum. Scientists and conservators worked together to test the feasibility of portable techniques and in situ investigations to better understand Roman painting technology; identify previous restoration materials; determine the presence of alteration products; and characterize deterioration mechanisms commonly found on architectural surfaces at archaeological sites of the Vesuvian Region. The collection and interpretation of the instrumental data has been critical to the design and implementation of appropriate passive and remedial interventions to stabilize the architectural surfaces and mitigate deterioration. The paper will present the results of the investigations using portable instrumentation along with a discussion of the capabilities and limitations of each technique and the practical implications of their use for architectural surfaces on archaeological sites.