Technical analysis

Pigments: yellow earth, red earth, lead white or minium

Analytical techniques: OM, XRF

The plaster is rather rough, which is characteristic of exterior murals. To the naked eye, it appears to be made of lime and sand. The samples taken are too small to discern the plaster’s composition, while XRD analyses have not yet been carried out.

Only the yellow and red colours have been preserved. The pigments include yellow and red earth, which can be inferred from the granulation of the pigment grains visible in the cross-sections (Fig. 1). This has also been confirmed by XRF analyses, which have detected high iron content in both pigments. However, they have also revealed the presence of a specific lead pigment, which is most pronounced in the red colour of the decoration on Christopher’s yellow cloak but much less abundant in the other samples. All indications point to the possibility that a lead pigment of some sort (either lead white or red minium) was a part of the painter’s original palette, which is unusual for al fresco painting, as such pigments are not durable using that technique. This could also have resulted from a subsequent retouching before the end of the 19th century when the toxic lead pigment was replaced by zinc white. The latter, together with titanium white and chrome green, can also be found on this same sample, though retouching was definitely involved in that case. The binder is lime from the plaster (high calcium peaks in the XRF spectra), but the painter must also have used some organic binder for the al secco parts.

The basic painting technique used to apply the local tones is al fresco (Fig. 1), while the red bordure around the figure was painted al secco: the colour layer is peeling from the plaster, and its lower surface is flat, indicating that the colour layer was applied on a dry surface (Fig. 2).

The red underdrawing and the dark red final contour, outlining the figure of Christopher, are visible. There are no incisions or pouncings, though Christopher’s and Jesus’ halos (which, like their heads, have not been preserved) were probably decorated with pouncings. Within the drawing, the local tone of the saint’s yellow tunic was applied using a broad brush. The modelling is gone, and only in a few places can we still see the remnants of the dark red colour used to paint the folds. The cross-section of the sample taken from this spot also clearly shows that the red was applied on top of the yellow (Fig. 2). It can be concluded that the red folds were painted al secco and have therefore fallen off, though the cross-section suggests that the red was applied on top of the still fresh yellow paint, as there are no distinct boundaries between the twocolour layers. As the head, hands, and feet have not been preserved, the manner in which the figures were modelled remains unknown.

Bodovlje, Succursal church of St Peter, Stage 1 (Bodovlje), 2024 (last updated 29. 8. 2024). Corpus picturarum muralium medii aevi, https://corpuspicturarum.zrc-sazu.si/en/poslikava/phase-1-bodovlje/ (21. 9. 2026).

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