Tracing Tempera through Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Analysing samples from four icons from the Nationalmuseum collection

Abstract: This thesis will analyze samples in form of cross-sections taken from four icons of the Nationalmuseum collection, two Russian, from the 18th and 19th centuries and two Greek, also from the 18th and 19th centuries, using the Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Technique. The objective is to detect, isolate and, if possible, identify the amino acids and the fatty acids in the protein and lipids used in the tempera, the ground, and the olifa using Time of Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry. By doing so, a view of the distribution of the different substances used in making the icons, can be presented. Through analysis, the paint layer can be studied to see how it has been affected by later additions such as olifa (varnish) and conservation materials. This will benefit the knowledge of these icons and their technical composition as well as it will be an aid in the conservation and restoration of icons from a technical point of view. To provide a background for the analysis, sections describing icons and the materials technological composition thereof, tempera and the chemistry of tempera, and the materials analysis method of Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, have been included in the thesis. These sections have been based on literature research, articles, seminars, and a conference on tempera, held in Munich in 2018. The ocular examination of the icons, and the collection of paint samples for the cross-sections took place in the fall of 2022. The analysis of the samples was done in the spring of 2023. The microscopy of the cross-sections was done in the studio of the author and the analysis was made at RISE research facilities in Borås with help of their Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry researcher.