Lead(II) Formate in Rembrandt's Night Watch: Detection and Distribution from the Macro‐ to the Micro‐scale

The Night Watch, painted in 1642 and on view in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, is considered Rembrandt's most famous work. X‐ray powder diffraction (XRPD) mapping at multiple length scales revealed the unusual presence of lead(II) formate, Pb(HCOO)2, in several areas of the painting. Until now,...

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Published in:Angewandte Chemie International Edition Vol. 62; no. 16; pp. e202216478 - n/a
Main Authors: Gonzalez, Victor, Fazlic, Ida, Cotte, Marine, Vanmeert, Frederik, Gestels, Arthur, De Meyer, Steven, Broers, Fréderique, Hermans, Joen, Loon, Annelies, Janssens, Koen, Noble, Petria, Keune, Katrien
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Germany Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 11.04.2023
Wiley-VCH Verlag
Edition:International ed. in English
Subjects:
Carboxylates
Chemical Sciences
Driers
Lead Formate
Lead oxides
Night
Pigments
Rembrandt
Synchrotron radiation
Synchrotrons
X-Ray Diffraction
Pigments
X-Ray Diffraction
Carboxylates
Lead Formate
Rembrandt
ISSN:1433-7851, 1521-3773, 1521-3773
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The Night Watch, painted in 1642 and on view in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, is considered Rembrandt's most famous work. X‐ray powder diffraction (XRPD) mapping at multiple length scales revealed the unusual presence of lead(II) formate, Pb(HCOO)2, in several areas of the painting. Until now, this compound was never reported in historical oil paints. In order to get insights into this phenomenon, one possible chemical pathway was explored thanks to the preparation and micro‐analysis of model oil paint media prepared by heating linseed oil and lead(II) oxide (PbO) drier as described in 17th century recipes. Synchrotron radiation based micro‐XRPD (SR‐μ‐XRPD) and infrared microscopy were combined to identify and map at the micro‐scale various neo‐formed lead‐based compounds in these model samples. Both lead(II) formate and lead(II) formate hydroxide Pb(HCOO)(OH) were detected and mapped, providing new clues regarding the reactivity of lead driers in oil matrices in historical paintings. X‐ray powder diffraction mapping at multiple length scales revealed the unusual presence of lead(II) formate, Pb(HCOO)2, in several areas of The Night Watch, Rembrandt's most famous painting. A possible chemical pathway resulting in the formation of this compound in historical oil paint was explored via micro‐analysis, notably using synchrotron radiation. New clues on the reactivity of metallic driers in oil systems were thus gathered.
Bibliography:These authors contributed equally to this work.
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ISSN:1433-7851
1521-3773
1521-3773
DOI:10.1002/anie.202216478