Diagnostics of wall paintings : a smart and reliable approach

The object of the work is a character of the Madonna con Bambino (XIII–XV century) mural painting (Fontecchio – L’Aquila, Italy). It was analyzed by different nondestructive testing (NDT) techniques: electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI), ultraviolet (UV) imaging and infrared vision. In addition, three micro-samplings were collected on suspected areas after examination of the signal strength variations over the raw thermograms. On the latter, the images’ quality was enhanced by applying advanced processing techniques. Micro-samplings were also analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and µ-Raman spectroscopy. Splitting, subsurface cracks and under-/over-paintings were detected by this integrated method