The study of bronze statuettes with the help of neutron-imaging techniques.
Until recently fabrication techniques of Renaissance bronzes have been studied only with the naked eye, microscopically, videoscopically and with X-radiography. These techniques provide information on production techniques, yet much important detail remains unclear. As part of an interdisciplinary study of Renaissance bronzes undertaken by the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, neutron-imaging techniques have been applied with the aim of obtaining a better understanding of bronze workmanship during the Renaissance period. Therefore, an explanation of the fabrication techniques is given to better understand the data collected by these neutron-imaging techniques. The data was used for tomography studies, which reveal hidden aspects that could not at all or scarcely be seen using X-radiography. For this specific study, the representative bronze 'Hercules Pomarius' of Willem van Tetrode (ca 1520-1588) has been examined, along with 20 other Renaissance bronzes from the Rijksmuseum collection.
Van Langh
R
R
Department of Materials Science, Faculty 3mE, Delft University of Technology, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft, The Netherlands. r.van.langh@rijksmuseum.nl
Lehmann
E
E
Hartmann
S
S
Kaestner
A
A
Scholten
F
F