The Colors of the Butterfly Wings: Non-Invasive Microanalytical Studies of Hand-Coloring Materials in 19th-Century Daguerreotypes

Year: 2022

Authors: Balbas DQ., Cattaneo B., Cagnini A., Belluzzo P., Innocenti S., Rossi S., Fontana R., Striova J.

Autors Affiliation: CNR, Natl Inst Opt, Largo E Fermi 6, I-50125 Florence, Italy; Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Lab Restauro Cartacei & Membranacei, MIC, Viale F Strozzi 1, I-50129 Florence, Italy; Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Lab Sci, MIC, Viale F Strozzi 1, I-50129 Florence, Italy; Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Lab Restauro Oreficerie, MIC, Via Alfani 78, I-50121 Florence, Italy.

Abstract: The public expected color from the early photographic images, yet, daguerreotypes-the first commercially available photographic process-failed to register the natural colors. Daguerreotypists developed several coloring methods to solve this inconvenience after 1840. Scientific analyses of the hand-colored daguerreotypes are limited, and the primary information sources available are manuals and patents. This study aims to contribute to the knowledge of hand-coloring techniques, which impacts conservation practices, mainly the cleaning procedures and complements technical art history investigations. We studied nine colored daguerreotypes with a non-invasive methodology based on three spectroscopic techniques: X-ray fluorescence (XRF), micro-Raman spectroscopy (mu-Raman), and micro-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy in reflection mode (mu-rFTIR). The results revealed the different colorants and some of their mixtures employed by the colorist. It also adds information regarding the photographic production of three studios: Desire Francois Millet, active in Paris between 1840 and 1868; Antoine Claudet (1797-1867), active in London; and the James E. McClees and Washington Lafayette Germon studio, operative between 1846 and 1855 in Philadelphia, USA. These technical details constitute a helpful comparison to future studies on Daguerreian studios and colored daguerreotypes.

Journal/Review: HERITAGE

Volume: 5 (4)      Pages from: 4306  to: 4324

More Information: This research is part of the Diagnostica Non invaSiva e conservazione di daghErrotipi e altri materiali fotografici (DIAGNOSE) project co-funded by Tuscany Region, POR FSC 2014-2020-Axis Employment GiovaniSi (Grant No. CUP B53D21008070008), Museo Galileo, El.En. group, and the National Institute of Optics from the National Council of Research (CNR-INO), in collaboration with the Opificio delle Pietre Dure (OPD).
KeyWords: daguerreotypes; pigments; Raman spectroscopy; FTIR; XRF; photography; bismuth white; cochineal lake; Prussian blue; colorants
DOI: 10.3390/heritage5040221

Citations: 2
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