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Visualizing
and Quantifying Rembrandt’s Smalt
Mixtures in The Night Watch in Three Dimensions Using
μ‑X-ray Fluorescence Tomography
Fréderique T. H. Broers (15294374)
Annelies van Loon (3834658)
Jan Garrevoet (1862218)
Francesca Gabrieli (3605723)
Jorien R. Duivenvoorden (16992586)
Victor Gonzalez (3768442)
Paul J. C. van Laar (25002612)
Petria Noble (6718982)
Koen Janssens (219438)
Florian Meirer (1349805)
Katrien Keune (2675404)
Biotechnology
Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
Chemical Sciences not elsewhere classified
Ecology
Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
volume percentages taken
main blue pigments
best preservation methods
artists ’ pigment
night watch </
quantifying rembrandt ’
g ., cobalt
containing potash glass
containing paint samples
containing paint mixtures
xrf tomography proves
rembrandt ’
situ </
wide variety
variety could
valuable tool
ray fluorescence
paints show
original intentions
multiple types
making process
high among
fuller understanding
established based
elements related
elemental composition
different clusters
cobalt ore
based micro
1642 ).
Smalt is one of the main blue pigments in Rembrandt van
Rijn’s <i>The Night Watch</i> (1642). Smalt is a
cobalt-containing potash
glass, ground to a powder to be used as an artists’ pigment.
In this study, three smalt-containing paint samples from this painting
were studied using synchrotron radiation-based micro-X-ray fluorescence
(SR-μ-XRF) tomography. To study the original intentions of the
artist, the degradation phenomena taking place in the paint and the
best preservation methods for the painting, a fuller understanding
of the smalt-containing paint mixtures is desired. The smalt particles
in Rembrandt’s paints show a wide variety in size and elemental
composition. Elements related to smalt are, e.g., cobalt, potassium,
arsenic, bismuth, nickel, and iron. The heterogeneity is very high
among the particles within one paint sample. Different clusters of
particles can be established based on the intensity of bismuth. This
variety could be caused by heterogeneity in the cobalt ore, the glass-making
process, the use of multiple types of smalt or it might be the result
of <i>in-situ</i> degradation. Next to the smalt, the volume
percentages taken up by other components of the paint are semi quantitively
estimated based on elemental information. This information can be
used in follow-up studies to improve the accuracy of models and the
representativeness of reconstructed paint mockup samples. SR-μ-XRF
tomography proves to be a valuable tool for the identification and
quantification of complex heterogenous smalt paints.
2026-09-17T00:00:00Z
Dataset
Media
10.1021/acs.analchem.5c07178.s002
https://figshare.com/articles/media/Visualizing_and_Quantifying_Rembrandt_s_Smalt_Mixtures_in_The_Night_Watch_in_Three_Dimensions_Using_X-ray_Fluorescence_Tomography/33872781
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