SPECIAL PAINTING AND PIGMENTS IN ANCIENT EGYPT
The study of ancient pigments developed with the modern science of chemistry. Already in the eighteenth century, the discovery of paintings and cakes of pigment at Pompeii inspired investigations of ancient pigments.
Researchers today can use a variety of destructive and nondestructive techniques to analyze Egyptian pigments. Flakes of paint can be examined under a microscope to discern the individual grains of pigment. The same flakes can be placed in a scanning electron microscope that launches beams of electrons at them, which can magnify an image more than optical microscopes. The impact of the beam can also cause the object to emit X-rays. With the right additional equipment, these X-ray emissions can be used to measure the percentage of the sample which is made up of specific elements. When combined with the shape and colour of the grains, this energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy allows the composition of pigments to be precisely identified.
Intact objects can also be examined with
