Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres?
This article offers a discussion of the possibility of distinguishing ochres from Mars pigments. The discussion addresses technological, archaeological, and artistic aspects. Natural earth pigments such as ochres, siennas, and umbers have been widely used from the Paleolithic to the present day and...
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MDPI AG
2024-11-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/7/11/291 |
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| author | Maria Cecilia Carangi Cristina Corti Laura Rampazzi |
| author_facet | Maria Cecilia Carangi Cristina Corti Laura Rampazzi |
| author_sort | Maria Cecilia Carangi |
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| description | This article offers a discussion of the possibility of distinguishing ochres from Mars pigments. The discussion addresses technological, archaeological, and artistic aspects. Natural earth pigments such as ochres, siennas, and umbers have been widely used from the Paleolithic to the present day and still find wide application despite the development of synthetic iron oxide pigment synthesis processes, called Mars pigments. The potential ability of today’s analytical techniques to distinguish between two classes of pigments of the same color with very similar chemical composition—but perhaps sufficient for reliable recognition—is also discussed. The paper begins by addressing the proper use of the terms “ochres” and “Mars pigments” and their accurate identification in artworks. It reviews the literature on the chemical–mineralogical characterization of yellow and red iron pigments and analyzes pigment catalogs to understand how companies distinguish ochres from Mars pigments. An experimental analysis using External Reflection Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR-ER) compared painting samples made with natural ochres and Mars pigments, confirming the literature findings and suggesting future research directions. Key differences such as hematite in yellow ochres and specific spectral peaks in red ochres support the potential of FTIR-ER spectroscopy as a noninvasive tool for distinguishing pigments, especially for fragile artifacts and archaeological applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8393290f1dfd44f7baac09cb3aa4b68f |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2571-9408 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Heritage |
| spelling | doaj-art-8393290f1dfd44f7baac09cb3aa4b68f2024-11-26T18:05:47ZengMDPI AGHeritage2571-94082024-11-017116192621210.3390/heritage7110291Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres?Maria Cecilia Carangi0Cristina Corti1Laura Rampazzi2Department of Architecture and Urban Studies, Politecnico di Milano, Via Bonardi 3, 20133 Milano, ItalyDepartment of Human Science and Innovation for the Territory, University of Insubria, Via Sant’Abbondio 12, 22100 Como, ItalyDepartment of Human Science and Innovation for the Territory, University of Insubria, Via Sant’Abbondio 12, 22100 Como, ItalyThis article offers a discussion of the possibility of distinguishing ochres from Mars pigments. The discussion addresses technological, archaeological, and artistic aspects. Natural earth pigments such as ochres, siennas, and umbers have been widely used from the Paleolithic to the present day and still find wide application despite the development of synthetic iron oxide pigment synthesis processes, called Mars pigments. The potential ability of today’s analytical techniques to distinguish between two classes of pigments of the same color with very similar chemical composition—but perhaps sufficient for reliable recognition—is also discussed. The paper begins by addressing the proper use of the terms “ochres” and “Mars pigments” and their accurate identification in artworks. It reviews the literature on the chemical–mineralogical characterization of yellow and red iron pigments and analyzes pigment catalogs to understand how companies distinguish ochres from Mars pigments. An experimental analysis using External Reflection Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR-ER) compared painting samples made with natural ochres and Mars pigments, confirming the literature findings and suggesting future research directions. Key differences such as hematite in yellow ochres and specific spectral peaks in red ochres support the potential of FTIR-ER spectroscopy as a noninvasive tool for distinguishing pigments, especially for fragile artifacts and archaeological applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/7/11/291ochresMars pigmentsarchaeometryinfrared spectroscopyyellow pigmentsred pigments |
| spellingShingle | Maria Cecilia Carangi Cristina Corti Laura Rampazzi Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? Heritage ochres Mars pigments archaeometry infrared spectroscopy yellow pigments red pigments |
| title | Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? |
| title_full | Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? |
| title_fullStr | Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? |
| title_short | Looking at the Modern to Better Understand the Ancient: Is It Possible to Differentiate Mars Pigments from Archaeological Ochres? |
| title_sort | looking at the modern to better understand the ancient is it possible to differentiate mars pigments from archaeological ochres |
| topic | ochres Mars pigments archaeometry infrared spectroscopy yellow pigments red pigments |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/7/11/291 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mariaceciliacarangi lookingatthemoderntobetterunderstandtheancientisitpossibletodifferentiatemarspigmentsfromarchaeologicalochres AT cristinacorti lookingatthemoderntobetterunderstandtheancientisitpossibletodifferentiatemarspigmentsfromarchaeologicalochres AT laurarampazzi lookingatthemoderntobetterunderstandtheancientisitpossibletodifferentiatemarspigmentsfromarchaeologicalochres |