Parma Cathedral Research Articles

The Polychromatic Inscriptions on the Relief Sculpture Deposition from the Cross by Benedetto Antelami in Parma Cathedral, Italy

This paper reports on the studies carried out on engraved inscriptions of the Deposition from the Cross by Benedetto Antelami (1150–1230), a relief sculpture conserved in the Cathedral of Parma (Italy). The inscriptions between the characters show residues of colored material in alternating red- and dark-colored stripes. The purpose of this specific investigation was to identify the materials (pigments and organic binders) used for the polychromy that are still present on the relief sculpture. Seven microsamples were taken to carry out laboratory analyses. In red-colored letters, mercury, and sulfur, constituents of the cinnabar (or vermilion) pigment were easily identified by SEM-EDS. This result is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy and XRD measurements. In the dark letters, carbon, iron, and lead are observed. The presence of materials containing metals is compatible with a mastic encrustation technique. FT-IR, Raman, and XRD techniques clearly detect beeswax, which was probably used as a polishing material. Amino acids and lipids that are typical of eggs have been identified by means of GC-MS investigations, suggesting their use as organic components of the mastic encrustation.

The 20th Century Wall Paintings in the Chapel of the Fallen in Parma Cathedral (Italy): Scientific Investigations for a Correct Conservation Project

In this work, we present a diagnostic study carried out on 20th century wall paintings in the Chapel of the Fallen of the Great War in the Cathedral of Parma (Italy). The Chapel was painted in the two-year period of 1921–1922 and has been recently restored. The paintings were investigated in order to study the technique used by the painter, Biagio Biagetti (Porto Recanati, 1877–Macerata, 1948) and their state of conservation. A total of twelve micro-fragments of the painting layers were sampled and investigated using different techniques. Raman spectroscopy revealed the large amount of different pigments used for each hue, many of them being synthetic materials. SEM/EDS analysis showed that the mortar was an aerial lime obtained from calcium carbonate mixed with a small amount of clay. Organic materials were identified by FTIR spectroscopy. GC/MS investigations revealed lipid and proteinaceous materials in the examined specimens; the lipid fraction, however, is not attributable to the presence of drying oils. From the determination of the amino acid content, it became apparent that the proteinaceous fraction is due to the combination of egg and animal glue; this allowed us to infer the use of “a secco” techniques, confirming the visual impressions of the restorer. The results obtained have contributed to the definition of the conservation project in its various phases.

Riders on the Throne: Animal Agency in Benedetto Antelami’s Parma Cathedra

This article focuses on Parma Cathedral’s episcopal throne, which is an exemplar among cathedrae with animal imagery. Embodying the more abstract aspects of their owners’ authority, animals occupy a prominent place within the seat’s decoration, thereby distilling the human–animal relationship in a way that links the legitimization of power to the act of sitting. Despite its extraordinary iconography and quality, the throne made by Benedetto Antelami (ca. 1178) is still relatively obscure. It is adorned with atlas figures carved in the round and two equestrian reliefs on the armrests, which connect riding to dominion and power while simultaneously transforming the act of enthroning and dethroning into a kind of allegory. Against the background of a more general discussion of animal depictions on medieval chairs, this article addresses new questions concerning the Parma cathedra’s animal décor, its object biography, patron, and possessor, as well as its place and role within the liturgy.

The deposition from the Cross in the church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (France): A masterpiece of Romanesque sculpture? Materials characterization to solve a 20th c. mystery

Abstract Dating and authenticating stone-sculpted works of art is a challenging aspect of cultural heritage studies. In fact, it is often possible to provenance the rock, by comparison of petrological, mineralogical and geochemical data, but no dating of the sculpture can be obtained. Also, stylistic observations need to be considered with care. However, in the case of mastic incrustation sculptures, the applied polychromy can support dating studies, based on pigments and binders. In the church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a haut-relief representing the Deposition from the Cross is exposed. The calcareous slab is decorated with red and black mastics. It resembles closely the Deposition from the Cross in the transept of Parma Cathedral, dated 1178 and “signed” by Benedictus Antelami. However, the St-Germain Deposition appeared in 1994, when it was donated to the parish by the descendants of Julien Auguste Duperrier, marble worker and collector of Italian antiquities. His last trip to Italy took place in 1924. No information is available on his deal, neither on the transport means arranged, nor on the sculpture itself (author, contractor, date, etc.). Art historical and historical considerations propose either a 12th or 19th–20th c. context for the creation of the sculpture. Chemical analyses of the pigments and binders are therefore proposed to clarify the dating the work of art. Microscopic samples are characterized by a multi-analytical approach: vibrational spectroscopies and X-ray powder diffraction are used to characterize the rock and the polychrome mastic. The rock is identified as a micritic limestone, and shows sulphation issues. Through Raman scattering measurements, the pigments were identified: carbon in the black mastic, and a mixture of red lead and a modern synthetic pigment (PR49:1) in the red areas. This information sheds new light on the chronology and manufacture of the Deposition from the Cross of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. These results allow for a better definition of further lines of research, and to finally propose an authorship for the sculpture.

La Cattedrale di Parma dopo il terremoto del 1117 senza il terremoto

The Parma Cathedral is one of the buildings of the Italian medieval Romanesque that in quite recent years has been the focus of renewed attention by scholars. In particular, Manfred Luchterhandt in...

A RESTORATION ORIENTED HBIM SYSTEM FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE DOCUMENTATION: THE CASE STUDY OF PARMA CATHEDRAL

Abstract. The need to safeguard and preserve Cultural Heritage (CH) is increasing and especially in Italy, where the amount of historical buildings is considerable, having efficient and standardized processes of CH management and conservation becomes strategic. At the time being, there are no tools capable of fulfilling all the specific functions required by Cultural Heritage documentation and, due to the complexity of historical assets, there are no solution as flexible and customizable as CH specific needs require. Nevertheless, BIM methodology can represent the most effective solution, on condition that proper methodologies, tools and functions are made available. The paper describes an ongoing research on the implementation of a Historical BIM system for the Parma cathedral, aimed at the maintenance, conservation and restoration. Its main goal was to give a concrete answer to the lack of specific tools required by Cultural Heritage documentation: organized and coordinated storage and management of historical data, easy analysis and query, time management, 3D modelling of irregular shapes, flexibility, user-friendliness, etc. The paper will describe the project and the implemented methodology, focusing mainly on survey and modelling phases. In describing the methodology, critical issues about the creation of a HBIM will be highlighted, trying to outline a workflow applicable also in other similar contexts.

LASER-SCANNER SURVEY OF STRUCTURAL DISORDERS: AN INSTRUMENT TO INSPECT THE HISTORY OF PARMA CATHEDRAL’S CENTRAL NAVE

Abstract. This paper presents the use of laser scanner derived data for the study of the structural disorders in the central nave of the Parma Cathedral. An accurate three-dimensional model of the entire nave was realized to investigate deformations, in order to reconstruct the original conformation and the subsequent evolutions, also in comparison with previous surveys. Specifically, for the analysis presented in the paper, seven scans were performed, one for each bay: the results allowed to compare the deformations on the seven vaults, on the transverse and diagonal arches, giving first hints on the possible differences in the behaviour between the different elements. The measures on the levels of floor and pillars bases were analysed in a historical monitoring approach, in order to retrace the evolution of the differential settlements in time, since the construction of the building. Moreover, a structural analysis has been carried out on one transverse arch with distinct element analysis, with two different approaches. In one case, the structure was inserted exactly as surveyed, and then subjected to the actions. In the second case, the original geometry, before the deformation, was retraced through a parametric approach and the structural analysis basically started at the beginning of the building’s life, thus trying to model not only the present structural situation, but also the path which led to the current deformation. The results were particularly meaningful as they showed that in the first case, disregarding the footsteps of history, the stress pattern inside the masonry was very different from the one obtained in the second case, which is more likely to represent the present conditions.

An integrated multi-analytical approach to the study of the dome wall paintings by Correggio in Parma cathedral

The restoration of one of the most famous masterpieces of the Renaissance, the wall paintings regarding the Assumption of the Virgin Mary painted inside the dome of the Cathedral of Parma by Antonio Allegri called Correggio (1489–1534) between 1526 and 1530, allowed an in-depth chemical-physical study of materials. Non-invasive infrared imaging and spectroscopic techniques (reflectance spectrometry in the visible range and in-situ X-ray fluorescence) and micro-invasive analytical techniques (optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis, powder X-ray diffraction, micro-FTIR spectroscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry) were chosen in order to provide the higher set of significant data, limiting as much as possible sampling. The joined use of different techniques allowed to deeply explore Correggio's palette, on the use of a fresco and/or a secco technique, to study as well degradation products and the diffused and old restoration materials like consolidants. The study allowed the characterization of a wide range of pigments, the identification of the binding media, mainly egg and animal glue, the restoration materials (acrylic resins, paraffin waxes, various pigments) and the degradation products (calcium sulfate dihydrate and calcium oxalate).

The steeple spire of the Parma Cathedral: An analysis of the glazed bricks and mortars

Abstract In October 2009, a terrible lightning struck the steeple spire of the Parma Cathedral, causing a fire. The fire-fighting operation made possible the discovery of the original spire ceiling made up by dichromatic glazed bricks, white and black, dating from the 14th century. Original materials presented a relevant decay, both for the high temperatures reached during the fire and for lack of maintenance. The research presents the first study of glazed bricks of the 14th century in Po Valley (Italy) with the purpose of collect chemical, mineralogical and petrographic data on the dichromatic glazed bricks. Brick samples with different kind of glazes and mortars exposed at different condition of fire were analyzed. The following techniques were used in the study: X-ray powder diffraction, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy analysis, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Glazes, applied on to Ca-rich paste, have a high lead content (41–57 wt%), with an high amount of tin (19–24 wt%) for the white opacified glazes and manganese (about 4.0 wt%) for the black ones. Typological and historical analysis allowed us to define the production technique of bricks and glazes. Mortars are mainly composed of lime binder and carbonate aggregate.

Non-invasive identification of surface materials on marble artifacts with fiber optic mid-FTIR reflectance spectroscopy

Research work using a compact and portable fiber optic mid-infrared reflectance spectrometer has been carried out to study surface materials on marble, first on laboratory reference models and then on historical objects. The laboratory research has shown that the complex optical reflectance phenomena of layered samples can be interpreted in terms of the nature of the compounds present (sulfates, oxalates, phosphates, resins, waxes and proteins were studied) even with a very low signal overlapping with the strong carbonate reflectance. The portable instrument was used for in situ examination of the surface condition of two Italian marble works of art: the Deposizione dalla Croce by Benedetto Antelami in the Parma cathedral and the David by Michelangelo in the Galleria dell’Accademia in Firenze.

Correggio's frescoes in Parma Cathedral

Correggio's frescoes in Parma Cathedral

Use of incompatible displacement modes in a finite element model to analyze the dynamic behavior of unreinforced masonry panels

A finite element model, where a non-conforming quadrilateral element is utilized, capable of analyzing the dynamic nonlinear behavior in a biaxial stress field of unreinforced masonry panels is presented. For the material, the linear elastic-plastic constitutive law is adopted. The formulation for the linear element and the extension for the linear elastic-plastic element are proposed. The solution is carried out by a direct step by step integration procedure in time domain, based on the Newmark method of the equilibrium equations, inclusive of inertial and damping actions, the latter evaluated using the Rayleigh hypothesis. The procedure was implemented in a computer program and verified by the analysis of an unreinforced masonry shear panel, the dynamic behavior of which was analyzed experimentally [1, 2]. The comparisons between the numeric results and laboratory test measurements show good agreement, proving the good performance of the non-conforming quadrilateral element also for time-dependent and markedly nonlinear analyses. In addition, the case of Parma Cathedral Bell-Tower subjected to a dynamic excitation available in literature, was analyzed using the proposed model. The same case was approached by a reliable finite element code [3], using quadratic serendipity elements and a more dense mesh than in the previous analysis. The results, in terms of kinematic parameters, stress and strain fields, etc. obtained by the two models, agree, proving that the use of a non-conforming quadrilateral element leads to analyses which are computationally economical and simple to use in input.