engleski

A Note on the Determination of the Binder Composition on an Historic Painted Textile

Sophisticated modern instruments and methods can contribute to the preservation of national and cultural heritage. Modern analytical methods such as chromatography, spectrometry and densitometry are extremely useful, particularly for the analysis of rare works of art from which only very small samples are available. This study describes the identification of the binding medium from a 200-year-old fragile silk banner using thin layer chromatography and video densitometry. The method involved the separation and identification of pure amino acids, vapour-phase hydrolysis of both the reference protein materials and the sample from the banner, and thin layer separation of the components. The separation was achieved using cellulose plates and a mixture of butanol, acetic (ethanoic) acid and water as eluent. The plates were sprayed with ninhydrin solution and then recorded by a Camag video densitometer system. The chromatograms with coloured spots were recorded under white light using a highly sensitive charge-coupled device (CCD) colour video camera. Images were acquired, processed and archived with Video Store 2 version 2.30 documentation software, and analysed using the Vista Scan program. The results for the unknown protein binder were compared with those for the standards. The experimental data identified the proteinaceous binder as an animal glue.

thin layer chromatography; historical textile; binder composition

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