Stage 1 (Slovenske Konjice)

Technical analysis

Pigments: white lime, haematite, malachite, carbon black, cinnabar (?)

Analytical techniques: OM, XRD, Raman

Due to the fragmentary preservation of the mural and several barely discernible layers, it is not definite that the samples taken from the lower edge of the fragment truly belong to the murals from the relevant period. The XRD analysis has revealed that the plaster consists of a large amount of aggregate, mainly quartz, a more modest amount of lime (implying a deficiency of binder), and some feldspars. The plaster also contains a bit of dolomite, which could originate from either the lime or the aggregate. A fossil, probably an echinoderm, was discovered in the cross-section of one of the samples (Fig. 1). The plaster composition attests to its brittleness due to the lack of binder. In the cross-sections of three samples, the plaster appears very bright, while the aggregate mostly consists of angular and translucent grains (obviously quartz) and a few finer dark sand grains (Figs. 1–2). One of the samples (Fig. 2) also shows the presence of limewash, which could also belong to a subsequent repainting.

The Raman chemical analyses have detected white lime, haematite, cinnabar, and carbon black. As the cinnabar appears on the uppermost layer, applied on top of a layer of limewash and above the dark-red colour, it could also belong to a subsequently added layer rather than to the oldest one (Fig. 2).

The samples clearly show that the murals were painted al fresco, as the lime from the plaster permeated into the colour layer (Figs. 1 and 2 – layer 2). If the colour layers in the sample mentioned at the end of the plaster analysis were painted simultaneously, the painter also used the lime technique (Fig. 2 – layers 3 and 4).

Due to the fragmentary preservation of the murals, the damaged surface, and the several indistinguishably overlapping layers, it is impossible to draw any conclusions regarding the painting process and modelling.

Gallery

Virtual 360° view

Stage 1 (Slovenske Konjice), 2024 (last updated 6. 1. 2025). Corpus picturarum muralium medii aevi, https://corpuspicturarum.zrc-sazu.si/en/poslikava/parish-church-of-st-george/ (27. 8. 2025).

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