A comparative interdisciplinary study of gilding techniques and materials in two Portuguese Baroque “talha dourada” complexes

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Irina Crina Anca Sandu
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3307-3682
Elsa Murta
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1380-5468
Eva Raquel Neves
Manuel Pereira
Andrei Victor Sandu
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9292-749X
Stepanka Kuckova
António Maurício

Abstract

The gilded polychrome carved wood in Portugal, (talha dourada) gained its most rich expression during the Baroque epoch with the development of production techniques and the use of of gold leaf. The present paper proposes a complementary and comparative study of two important complexes of talha: one from St. Alberto’s church, integrating the visiting circuit of the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (Lisbon), and the other from church of Vale de Figueira (Santarém district). Both complexes house talha dourada’s decoration from the 18th century, that were studied through an inter-disciplinary approach, in which analytical data (optical microscopy, fluorescent stain, XRF, SEM-EDX, micro-computerized tomography, FTIR, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionisation-Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry) complement historical data.

Keywords: Carved gilded wood, Comparative study, Gilding techniques, Materials, Analytical study

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