Researchers develop high-resolution technique based on
Optical Coherence Tomography for non-invasively imaging and analyzing the
hidden layers in centuries-old priceless paintings
A painting hanging on the wall in an art gallery tells one
story. What lies beneath its surface may tell quite another.
Often in a Rembrandt, a Vermeer, a Leonardo, a Van Eyck, or
any other great masterpiece of western art, the layers of paint are covered
with varnish, sometimes several coats applied at different times over their
history. The varnish was originally
applied to protect the paint underneath and make the colors appear more vivid,
but over the centuries it can degrade. Conservators carefully clean off the old
varnish and replace it with new, but to do this safely it is useful to
understand the materials and structure of the painting beneath the surface.
Conservation scientists can glean this information by analyzing the hidden
layers of paint and varnish.