Abstract
Reports on the scientific study of an Etruscan mural painting, dating back to the orientalizing period. Micro-destructive spectroscopic analysis of pigmented fragments has provided some novel information about the Etruscan painting technique. The painting substrate consists of a mixture of finely ground volcanic stone and sedimentary calcareous stone. The substrate is made up of two distinct layers: an outermost layer enriched in calcareous component is superimposed on a lower containing volcanic stone. The orange pigment is hematite (alpha-Fe2O3) while the dark red pigment is a mixture of hematite, maghemite (gamma-Fe2O3) and pyrolusite (beta-MnO2). The white pigment is calcite (CaCO3). Notably, from the painting layer morphology it appears that the pigments were applied in a mixture of lime water. By infrared spectroscopic technique, no trace of organic binder was found.
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