title: Has your ancient stamp been regummed with synthetic glue? A FT-NIR and FT-Raman study.
abstract: The potential of FT-NIR and FT-Raman spectroscopies to characterise the gum applied on the backside of ancient stamps was investigated for the first time. This represents a very critical issue for the collectors' market, since gum conditions heavily influence stamp quotations, and fraudulent application of synthetic gum onto damaged stamp backsides to increase their desirability is a well-documented practice. Spectral data were processed by exploratory pattern recognition tools. In particular, application of principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that both of the spectroscopic techniques provide information useful to characterise stamp gum. Examination of PCA loadings and their chemical interpretation confirmed the robustness of the outcomes. Fusion of FT-NIR and FT-Raman spectral data was performed, following both a low-level and a mid-level procedure. The results were critically compared with those obtained separately for the two spectroscopic techniques.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, University of Genoa, Via Brigata Salerno 13, 16147 Genoa, Italy; Laboratoire de Spectrochimie Infrarouge et Raman LASIR, CNRS UMR 8516, Université Lille 1 Sciences et Technologies, Bat. C5, 59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Remo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Simonetti
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, University of Genoa, Via Brigata Salerno 13, 16147 Genoa, Italy. Electronic address: oliveri@dictfa.unige.it.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Oliveri
authors.affiliation: École Polytechnique Universitaire de Lille (Polytech Lille), Avenue Paul Langevin, 59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Adrien
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Henry
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Spectrochimie Infrarouge et Raman LASIR, CNRS UMR 8516, Université Lille 1 Sciences et Technologies, Bat. C5, 59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Ludovic
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Duponchel
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, University of Genoa, Via Brigata Salerno 13, 16147 Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lanteri
mesh_terms: D000269:Adhesives / Q000032:analysis*; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman
chemical_list: D000269:Adhesives
keywords: Data fusion; NIR spectroscopy; Philately; Principal component analysis (PCA); Raman spectroscopy; Stamp gum