ABSTRACT The Pace di Siena is a unique en ronde bosse enamel, with few comparable pieces in Europe. The enamel, preserved and exhibited in the Arezzo Diocesan Museum (Italy), is surrounded by a frame decorated with thirty blue and pink gems whose identity has never been explored through analytical studies. The historical art literature has traditionally described these gems as tourmaline, aquamarine, beryl, and quartz, without delving into their provenance. Only a few hypotheses exist regarding the manufacture of the precious frame. Gemological analysis, in situ Raman spectroscopy, and energy‐dispersive portable x‐ray fluorescence (ED‐pXRF) analysis have, for the first time, revealed the true nature of the gems, identifying them as fourteen natural blue corundum (sapphires) and sixteen natural pink spinels. The analysis of the inclusions also supports the hypothesis of heat treatment in the natural sapphires while suggesting a possible reuse for the natural untreated spinels, as indicated by the presence of distinctive holes. Additionally, semiquantitative geochemical data obtained by ED‐pXRF after calibration through particle‐induced x‐ray emission (PIXE) analysis on a set of reference gemstones has provided valuable insights into the possible origins of the sapphires (which seems to have a metamorphic origin consistent with a possible Sri Lankan origin) and the pink spinels (which may have originated be come from Myanmar or Tajikistan). The study highlights the intersections between the materiality of the object, the concept of object biography, the provenance of their gems, and its chaîne opératoire .

The casket of the Reliquary-Crown of the Holy Thorns, housed in the treasury of Saint-Aubain Cathedral (Namur, Belgium), is a 13th-century masterpiece designed to hold the cathedral’s most revered relic. The octagonal wooden box is covered in leather and decorated with enamel medallions. Over the centuries, the casket has experienced material deterioration, prompting a conservation project supported by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.An interdisciplinary study led by the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage in Brussels (KIK-IRPA) examined its construction and materials. Dendrochronology confirmed a terminus post quem of 1197 for the wood. The analysis of the enamels, when combined with comparisons to other enamel productions and caskets, could suggest a date in the first third of the 13th century, when two types of enamel compositions coexisted. However, neither the enamel composition nor the stylistic comparisons allow for a definitive decision on whether it is a Limoges or a northern European (?) production. Textile dating identified the red damask lining as being from the mid-17th century.Conservation treatments included anoxia, stabilisation of leather and textiles, metal cleaning, and enamel consolidation. Preventive conservation, guided by the ArtGarden project, assessed environmental risks to ensure the long-term preservation of this complex, mixed-media artefact. This study enhances our understanding of medieval church objects and emphasises the importance of collaborative research in cultural heritage conservation.

Ecclesiastical objects were rarely made from ceramics and are therefore not often found in church museums. The Diocesan Museum in Sandomierz is a notable exception, with an interesting and diverse collection of 21 transfer-printed faience vessels from the mid-19th century. This is a very valuable collection as it provides a picture of the production of faience in the mid-19th century in Ćmielów and, to some extent, in the whole of Poland. It contains all three basic types of printed underglaze decoration popular at the time, namely foreign motifs, Poland’s views and “wallpaper” ornament. The specimens with Poland’s views are particularly valuable. They are very rare in museum collections and practically non-existent on the antiquarian market. The author analyses these objects in detail, focusing primarily on Polish views, giving their graphic prototypes, the time of production and provenance. He also discusses the issues of under-glaze printing technology, with which all the objects in the collection are covered.

El siguiente artículo tiene como objeto explicar el proceso de restauración llevado a cabo en el año 2021 de la pintura de tabla Cristo atado a la columna, obra inédita de Luis de Morales. Tras su hallazgo en la villa de Alba de Tormes (Salamanca, España), procedente probablemente de la iglesia de San Juan Bautista de la referida villa, esta obra ahora forma parte de la exposición permanente Misterio Admirable del Museo Diocesano de Arte Sacro de Salamanca, inaugurada en marzo de 2023, en el Palacio Episcopal de Salamanca. La intervención realizada de la pieza se destaca por la aplicación del método científico para su atribución, y durante todo el proceso de restauración, aunada con el sentido teológico que aporta al marco del siglo XVII y al significado iconológico. __________ The following article aims to explain the restoration process carried out during 2021 of the panel painting Christ Tied to the Column, an unprecedented work by Luis de Morales. After its discovery in the town of Alba de Tormes (Salamanca, Spain), probably coming from the church of San Juan Bautista in the aforementioned town, this work is now part of the permanent exhibition Misterio Admirable (Admirable Mystery) at the Museo Diocesano de Arte Sacro de Salamanca (Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art of Salamanca), inaugurated in March 2023, in the Episcopal Palace of Salamanca. The intervention carried out on the piece stands out for the application of the scientific method for its attribution, and that the whole restoration process is combined with the theological sense that contributes to the 17th century setting and the iconological meaning.

The article analyses armament presented in gothic art from the last quarter of 14th cen‑ tury and the beginning of 15th century in Teutonic Prussia, introducing late medieval visored bascinets. Among examined pieces of art are: no longer existing altar panels from the All Saints Chapel in St. Mary’s Basilica in Gdańsk; Poliptych of Grudziądz from the National Museum in Warsaw, lost Retabulum painting from Frombork and also lost Reliquary from Kwidzyn. Furthermore author of the article analyses a piece of gothic silversmithing from Gdańsk area, called ciborium. This particular piece originated from the John the Baptist Church in Chojnice and is currently stored in the treasury of Diocesan Museum in Pelplin. It has not been discussed by the armour experts so far. Examined images of pig faced bascinets and klappvisiers have quite a few analogies in the iconography of other countries in Central and Western Europe. Comparison with existing artefacts reveals much similarity when it comes to shapes with the helmets from the museum collections. During research author also analysed bascinets on two statues of St. George: first is located in St. Mary’s Basilica in Gdańsk (dated around 1400) and the other one is located in Stara Kościelnica in Malbork County. Main conclusion of the presented study on helmets is the realism of analysed images (despite some schematism, it also applies to the images from the All Saints Chapel in St. Mary’s Basilica in Gdańsk). Reviewed bascinets should be included to modern type and were commonly worn by the knights in the last quarter of the 14th century. There might be some doubts when it comes to the helmets depicted on the Reliquary from Kwidzyn, however after further research author includes bascinets with aventails to the early type of great bascinets (this also applies to the helmet shown on the statue of St. George in St. Mary’s Basilica in Gdańsk).

The 8th Convention of the Association of Museums in Poland on 18-19 September 1932 in Przemyśl On 18-19 September 1932 in Przemyśl, on the initiative of Kazimierz Osiński, head of the National Museum of the Przemyśl Region, the Association of Museums in Poland organized the 8th Convention of the Delegates of the Association of Museums in Poland. 40 participants from all over Poland took part in the convention: representatives of museums, conservators and ministry officials. During the meeting, current museological issues were discussed, e.g. problems and concepts of a regional museum (Rules and Regulations of the Regional Museum Section were adopted) and protection of sacred monuments. The major point on the agenda, however, was passing a bill of the law on protection of public museums and an executive directive to that law. Papers were delivered by delegates Józef Kupka, Jan Lauterbach, Rev. Stefan Momidłowski and Kazimierz Osiński. The Convention was complete with a concert of the orchestra of the Przemyśl Musical Society and a tour of the town’s museums and monuments (the National Museum of the Przemyśl Region, the Diocesan Museum and the Krasiczyn Castle). The event considerably enhanced the reputation of Przemyśl in the Polish museum world.

The subject of this study is the works of modern Christian painting, graphics and sculpture on the example of the collection that became part of the Yenisei Museum-Reserve in 2021. The relevance lies in the clarification of a number of theoretical aspects of the dialogue between contemporary art and religion on the example of the interaction of the priest Andrei Yurevich with Siberian artists. The novelty lies in the description of the socio-cultural context of the formation of the collection in the 2000s. In order to identify the main trends in Christian art, the typology method was applied, and an interview was also conducted with the founder of the collection, priest Andrei Yurevich, and with art historian M. V. Moskalyuk, the original works in the Yenisei Museum-Reserve were examined. The theoretical results include the reconstruction of the history of the formation of the collection, the stages of its development (from the private initiative of the priest to the parish museum, later to the diocesan museum and, finally, inclusion in the state museum). Based on the analysis of individual works from the collection, a typology of the main trends in contemporary Christian art is developed. In the last part of the article, various options for updating the considered works in the exhibition activities of the Yenisei Museum-Reserve were developed. In particular, the special significance of paintings that reveal the local history of Eastern Siberia is shown, the possibility of a comparative demonstration of the collection's works with the works of artists of the second half of the 19th – early 20th centuries is assessed. In conclusion, the regularity of the collection entering the state museum is emphasized in connection with the new approach to the definition of the concept of museum, which involves working with different communities, including believers.

The Saint Francis of Assisi with three angels crowning him in a day landscape and two donors in prayer has been known at least since the end of the seventeenth century in the church of San Francesco in Gallipoli, in the province of Lecce (currently the Saint Francis is relocated in the Diocesan Museum - section of Gallipoli “Mons. Vittorio Fusco”). In 1951 Giovanni Urbani brought it to the national attention of art history studies as the work of one of Titian’s greatest contemporaries, Giovanni Antonio de’ Sacchis known as Pordenone, based on an intuition of Sabino Jusco. Yet the provenance of the higher quality sixteenth-century work in a church in the Salento area remains mysterious. The direct inspection of the Saint Francis, including recent exhibitions and restoration interventions, made it possible to re-examine in depth or for the first time the issues concerning the genesis, chronology, paths and commissioning of the painting.

Mihail Strelbitchi, bookbinder, refined engraver, and master printer, dominates the Moldovan typographic art from the 18th century. Among those several dozen works to which he contributed throughout his life, either as an engraver or as a printer, some are printed outside the borders of Moldova, respectively in Dubasari and Movilau. Book of Hours (Ceaslov) printed in Dubasari in 1794, where Strelbitchi settled his printing house for a short time, is a book in which he spreads countless elements of his graphic art: ornate letters, frontispieces, vignettes, and engravings bearing his signature. The Diocesan Museum in Husi has in its rich old book inventory two copies of Book of Hours (Ceaslov) printed at Dubasari. They are in a relatively good state of preservation, being kept almost entirely. No volume contains, however, the title page. The book is printed in Romanian, with Cyrillic characters. Both volumes are bound in brown leather, wooden boards, and metal locks, the leather being damaged The volumes lack support marks, having traces of a xylophagous attack. Some sheets are detached from the spine, which led to their embrittlement. All these degradations but also the value of the books themselves impose the need to restore these values of the Romanian typographic art.

Stained glass paint layers made with vitreous paints can be a challenging subject for analyses. Their heterogenic structure requires proper experimental methodology in order to obtain valuable data. The main goal of this paper is to present the advantages of macro-XRF scanning (MA-XRF) in the non-destructive investigation of historical grisaille paint layers on the basis of research conducted on seven stained glass panels from the Dominican Monastery in Kraków, the Diocesan Museum in Kielce and the National Museum in Poznań (Poland). The obtained results showed the capabilities of MA-XRF scanning in technology recognition, the legibility of damaged fragments of painted depictions, as well as with distinguishing the elemental composition between vitreous paints in different colours. Additionally, SEM-EDS measurements are presented so as to acquire quantitative results and additional information concerning light elements.

The widely adopted title of “Ecstasy of St Francis”, a painting at the Diocesan Museum in Siedlce, was introduced in literature in 1966 based on the typology developed by José Gudiol. The designa- tion continues to be used until today. However, the significance and the purport of the title has not been confronted with the representation, especially given the current knowledge about its details. No attention has been paid so far to the nature of the stigmata, nor have any conclusions been drawn from the arrangement of the fingers or the depiction of bone remains, their pattern and placement. An analysis of those motifs changes the previous interpretation of what the work seeks to convey. The paper also cites arguments in favour of amending the current dating, from 1578-80 to the early seventeenth century.

Abstract. The reliquary crown, hosted in the diocesan museum of Namur, was produced during the beginning of the 13th century to shelter a fragment of the holy crown of thorns. This beautiful piece of goldsmithery is made of eight gold plates, topped by round lobes, and connected to each other by hinges blocked with a pin decorated by a pearl. The crown is decorated by filigrees, flowers, and approximately 400 pearls and coloured (green, reddish pink, turquoise, red, blue) stones showing simple cutting with various sizes and shapes. Raman and portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (pXRF) techniques have been used to determine the nature and sources of all samples, as well as the composition of filigrees. Analyses have identified emeralds from Pakistan, reddish pink spinels from Tajikistan, red almandine garnets from India, turquoise from Iran, blue sapphires from Sri Lanka or Myanmar, and European pearls. The filigrees contain approximately 86 wt % Au, 7 wt % Ag, and 7 wt % Cu, thus confirming a gold-rich composition. The gemstones, contemporary with the crown, probably arrived in Europe by the silk trade road.

Artykuł referuje wstępne wyniki badań kodykologicznych, zabytkoznawczych i technologicznych przeprowadzonych przy średniowiecznej księdze muzycznej ze zbiorów Muzeum Diecezjalnego w Toruniu (nr inw. MDT-K-003) w ramach grantu 0122/NPRH6/H11/85/2018, Inwentarz Sztuki Torunia, cz. 1, Dziedzictwo sakralne, zespół staromiejski. W skąpej literaturze przedmiotu kodeks rozpoznany został jako antyfonarz, wykonany dla kościoła parafialnego pw. św. Jana Chrzciciela i Jana Ewangelisty w Toruniu, (do którego zasobów archiwalnych do niedawna należał), datowano go na przełom XV i XVI wieku. W prezentowanym artykule księga została rozpoznana jako Graduale de tempore o uzusie krzyżackim: autorzy analizują zawartość kodeksu, omawiają zagadnienia kodykologiczne, związane z jego strukturą materialną i użytkowaniem, prezentują studium zdobień i nowe wnioski proweniencyjne. Księga wykazuje bardzo bliskie analogie – zarówno pod względem oryginalnej struktury, jak i charakteru dopisów – wobec niekompletnego woluminuGraduale de sanctis ze zbiorów Biblioteki Diecezjalnej w Pelplinie (sygn. L2). Oba woluminy pochodzą prawdopodobnie z kręgu kapituły chełmińskiej (co potwierdza także analiza porównawcza zdobień w pelplińskim antyfonarzu L5–L6 wykonanym na zlecenie dziekana kapituły w Chełmży, Iohannes Copetz w 1419 r.) i powstały najpewniej w 2. ćwierci XV wieku. Dokonana tu identyfikacja ważnego, ale mało znanego dzieła rękopiśmiennego, przechowywanego w zbiorach toruńskich, ma duży potencjał i w ujęciu porównawczym może prowadzić do wyłonienia konkretnego skryptorium, czynnego w I poł. XV w. przy katedrze w Chełmży

Nowadays, Pietro Vannini is considered one of the most skilled 15th- century Italian goldsmiths. He was able to harmonize stylistic features of the late Gothic tradition with the new elements typical of the Renaissance art. Indeed, he realised various monstrances, crosses and reliquaries that are still displayed in important museums and churches. Yet, this article focuses on one of his less famous creations, a processional cross displayed at the Diocesan Museum of Osimo. The artefact has not been adequately documented in the past, despite its relevance, and this has caused confusion on its origin and iconography. Various are the hypothesis on the date of its origin, among them the one from scholar Clerici assigns the cross to the late fifteenth century. Moreover, complex is the analysis and identification of the figures that decorate the cross from the iconographical point of view. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to clarify the story of the cross and to underline its relevance. The article starts from the origin of the cross along with a stylistic and iconographic in-depth analysis, where scholars such as Gori, Fanciulli and Montevecchi (one of the best scholars of Vannini) express their views. Then proceeds to a focus on the several restorations the piece has undergone, from those mandated by bishop Spada and bishop Compagnoni, to the campaignsthat have not been documented, yet can be inferred from the changes they brought to the artefact and its various descriptions throughout different periods in history.

This paper aims to study the sculptural elements of the Roman period, mostly unpublished, preserved in the Diocesan Museum of Tarragona. Almost all of them belonged to the architectural and figurative program of the temple of divus Augustus , as can be corroborated by its finding circumstances. However, the pieces whose origin is known were found probably in secondary context, associated with marble recycling workshops from the Late-Antique period. Most of the pieces correspond to architectural reliefs. The clipei belonging to masks of Jupiter Ammon and Medusa predominate. Fragments of the perimeter decoration of various types are mainly preserved, although two fragments with Medusa masks are also found. We have also detected the remains of other reliefs of various typologies and few examples of exempt sculpture. Almost all of the pieces studied are made of the same fine-grained white marble, probably from Luni-Carrara. The study of all these sculptural elements allows us to provide new data on the ornamental and figurative programs in the area of the temple of Divus Augustus in Tarraco .

У статті аналізуються поняття «ревіталізація» та «реновація» в контексті збереження історичних будівель і пам’яток архітектури. Констатується відсутність фахових нормативів та поняттєва розмитість термінів «ревіталізація» та «реновація» внаслідок невизначеності їх методичних засад. Цими ж причинами пояснюється синонімічне використання паралельних термінів (реабілітація, регенерація, ревалоризація, реституція), сутність яких є розмитою. Причиною цього явища є пошук можливостей осучаснення об’єктів спадщини і пристосування їх до суспільних потреб шляхом розширення спектру фахових методик, які би передбачали застосування до деградованих пам’яток архітектури дії ширшого спектру, ніж вимагає реставрація і формували методичні підходи до такого виду робіт.
\nСистемні теоретичні дослідження з цього предмету відсутні. Окремі праці теж не
\nдають відповіді на поставлене питання. Відтак розглядається практичний досвід робіт з
\nревіталізації та реновації у Польщі (Мануфактура в Лодзі), Франції (музей Орсе в Парижі),
\nГолландії (Національний музей в Амстердамі), Німеччині (Новий музей в Берліні, музей Моріцбург у Галле, дієцезіальний музей у Кьольні), Іспанії (Кайша Форум у Мадриді), який демонструє споріднені підходи, а іноді спірні концепції. Розглянуті об’єкти належать до тих,
\nщо позитивно сприйняті суспільством. Їх споріднює монофункція (музеї), яка дозволила застосувати єдиний концептуальний принцип для ревіталізації (реновації) об’єктів. Переконливість їх образу значною мірою зумовлена високою якістю сучасних матеріалів і виконанням робіт на найвищому технологічному рівні. Акцентується необхідність наукового аналізу ширшого кола типологічно різних об’єктів з метою професійної рефлексії, узагальнення
\nметодичних підходів та вироблення законодавчих принципів.

X-ray Computed Tomography (X-ray CT) is a sophisticated non-destructive imaging technique to investigate structures and materials of complex objects, and its application can answer many conservation and restoration questions. However, for Cultural Heritage investigations, medical CT scanners are not optimized for many case-studies: These instruments are designed for the human body, are not flexible and are difficult to use in situ. To overcome these limitations and to safely investigate works of art on site—in a restoration laboratory or in a museum—the X-ray Tomography Laboratory of the University of Bologna designed several CT systems. Here we present two of these facilities and the results of important measurement campaigns performed in situ. The first instrument, light and flexible, is designed to investigate medium-size objects with a resolution of a few tens of microns and was used for the CT analysis of several Japanese theater masks belonging to the collection of the “L. Pigorini” Museum (Rome). The second is designed to analyze larger objects, up to 200 cm and was used to investigate the collection of the so-called “Statue Vestite” (devotional dressed statues) of the Diocesan Museum of Massa.

The article deals with the fate of the relics of Saint Władysław donated in 1585 by the Polish queen Anna Jagiellonka to the Jesuit college in Pułtusk. They were handed over from the royal treasury as evidence of gratitude for the education of Andrzej Batory - nephew of King Stephen I. Later the members of the Waza dynasty: princess Anna Katarzyna (1634) and king Władysław IV Waza (1635), fond homage to these relics. At that time he also gave them a silver reliquary as a gift. After the suppression of the Jesuits, the fate of the relics was unknown. Artifacts connected associated with them were found in the church of Saint Peter and Paul in Pułtusk in 2016. Research was unable to confirm that 7 of the oldest parts of a skull came from Saint Władysław`s skull which is now kept in Györ (lack of the DNA in the parts from Pułusk). Later, it was confirmed that these artifacts venerated in Pułtusk were relics of Saint Władysław. On the basis of the source analysis and comparison of the size of herms and pillows the author fixed that this herm, which was kept in Diocesan Museum in Płock, known as herm Saint Maurycy`s herm is in fact the herm donated to the Pułtusk`s Jesuits by Władysław IV in 1635 on Saint Władysław`s relics.

Title: A “well adorned shrine” for St Katarina of Vadstena? A reinterpretation of the embroided reliquary in Linköping Diocesan Museum This article discusses an embroided skull reliquary in the keeping of Linköping Cathedral’s Diocesan Museum in Sweden. It is one of four still extant similar reliquaries from Vadstena Abbey. The reliquary has previously been examined by Agnes Branting & Andreas Lindblom (Medeltida vävnader och broderier i Sverige 1928) and later discussed by Axel L. Romdahl in Fornvännen (1929) as well as by Carl R. af Ugglas (1935). In 2001, Inger Estham described it in a publication on textile objects in Linköping Cathedral and suggested that it was made for the feast of the translation of Bishop Nils Hermansson in 1515. A renewed analysis of the reliquary, which takes the embroidery techniques, the loss of ornaments and the iconography into consideration, supports the assumed provenance from Vadstena Abbey. The hitherto unnoticed decoration on the lid, in the shape of a typical Birgittine nun’s crown, suggests that the relics belonged to someone in the Birgittine context. Based on this observation, together with an iconographical and stilistic analysis, this article argues for a rejection of the connection between the reliquary and the translation of Bishop Nils Hermansson. It is further suggested that the dating of the reliquary must be adjusted to a time not later than the translation feast of Katarina of Vadstena in 1489, and that it might even have originally been made to encase her skull.

A rare medieval parchment roll, called Exultet 1 (first half of XI Century), preserved in the Diocesan Museum of Capitolo Metropolitano of Bari (Italy) has been studied. Certainly, it is one of the highest literary and artistic expressions ever produced in Bari, one of a kind. It is also the very first among medieval European liturgical rolls, in which miniatures are painted upside-down in respect to the text. To analyse inorganic pigments, a mobile laboratory has been set up at the museum. The techniques used, for a non-invasive and non-destructive in situ analysis, were: VIS-NIR spectrophotometry in reflectance mode with optic fibres (FORS), X-Ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) and finally μ-Raman spectroscopy. Such multi-methodological approach allowed to acquire many data without causing any stress to the artwork. The mineral pigments have been identified mainly by FORS and they are: red earth and minium, lapis lazuli and azurite, green earth and copper resinate, orpiment and yellow earth. In some areas, traces of a residual gold leaf have been identified by XRF. The presence of rare and precious pigments as lapis lazuli and gold leaf underlines the sacredness and the importance of the parchment. This is the first scientific investigation performed on the Exultet 1 of Bari.