Please cite this article in press as: O. Tarquini, et al., Pigment identification on Campana reliefs from the Palatine Hill and Colosseum Valley in Rome, Journal of Cultural Heritage (2019), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2019.07.026 ARTICLE IN PRESS G Model CULHER-3660; No. of Pages 9 Journal of Cultural Heritage xxx (2019) xxx–xxx Available online at ScienceDirect www.sciencedirect.com Chemistry for Cultural Heritage at CNR Pigment identification on Campana reliefs from the Palatine Hill and Colosseum Valley in Rome O. Tarquini a,∗ , L. Pronti b,1 , E.G. Lorenzetti c , Anna Candida Felici b a C.N.R. Istituto di Cristallografia–Area della Ricerca Montelibretti, Via Salaria Km 29,300, 00015 Monterotondo (RM), Italy b Dipartimento di Scienze di Base e Applicate per l’Ingegneria, Sapienza Università di Roma, Via Scarpa 16, 00161 Roma Italy c Dipartimento di Scienze dell’Antichità, Sapienza Università di Roma, Via dei Volsci 122, 00185 Roma Italy a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 8 June 2019 Accepted 19 July 2019 Available online xxx Keywords: XRF FORS XRD PIL imaging SEM-EDS Campana reliefs Earthenware polichromy a b s t r a c t This article shows the first pigment identification of the Campana reliefs, Roman architectural earthenware plaques. The Campana reliefs polychromy were investigated by applying a multidisciplinary approach involving non-invasive and micro-destructive techniques to some fragments with traces of colour found on the north-eastern slopes of the Palatine Hill in Rome. X-ray fluorescence analysis and reflectance measurements provided preliminary identification of pigments, which was subsequently confirmed by X-ray diffraction and elemental mapping by scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrom- etry carried out on micro-samples and cross sections, respectively. Yellow ochre, red ochre, lead white, calcium-based white pigment, Egyptian blue and minium were identified. In addition, PIL (Photo Induced Luminescence) imaging was performed, identifying the macro-distribution of Egyptian blue, even on plaques without visible traces of colour. © 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The colouring of ancient sculptures is better understood today thanks to important studies conducted in Europe [1–5], but the importance of colour in ancient earthenware architectural elements is still overlooked. The purpose of this article is to inves- tigate the use of polychromy on Roman architectural earthenware plaques commonly referred as Campana reliefs, after the pioneer studies conducted by Gian Battista Campana [6]. In Roman cul- ture colour was an integral part of religious and political message as reported by Vitruvius (De Architectura 9, 2–4), Pliny (Natural History XXXIII, 122), among other authors. The heyday of the Campana reliefs production is the age of Augustus and the Julio-Claudian dynasty, when the domus and vil- lae of the Augustan family and the senatorial élite were decorated with many different themes, often with a strong ideological appeal [7,8]. The plaques can be placed as a single relief, or as a frieze alternating a number of patterns on a single subject or in series ∗ Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: ombretta.tarquini@mlib.ic.cnr.it (O. Tarquini), lucilla.pronti@uniroma1.it, lucilla.pronti@lnf.infn.it (L. Pronti), elena@casalecydonia.com (E.G. Lorenzetti), annac.felici@uniroma1.it (A.C. Felici). 1 Laboratory Nazionali di Frascati, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare Via Enrico Fermi 40, Frascati (RM), Italy. that form a sort of narrative [9,10]. The single plaque, regardless of its function, can be characterised by a central axis of symmetry, with figures placed at the sides, or by a free composition, which can be associated with one or more plaques of shared thematic or ide- ologically connected. The end of this tradition is about the second half of the second century A.D. Mold-made, but individually finished by hand, the Campana reliefs were collector’s items throughout the nineteenth century, and may now be found in major museums in Europe. The plaques have been studied from many points of view: production and trade [11,12], type and function [13], iconography and style [12,14–16], and recently by the archaeometric perspective, through the char- acterisation of the ceramic matrix [17]. No study, to our knowledge, has never addressed the colour of the Campana reliefs either, with respect to the pigments, their tech- niques of production or application, or their decorative syntax or meaning. This is likely due both to the rarity of plaques with colour traces, and to the difficulty of finding appropriate documentation in colour. We propose to complete this lacuna with the ambitious intent to answer to several quests: • What was the technique used to paint this artworks? • There was a correlation between the used pigments and the coloured features? • Were the plaques all coloured? https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2019.07.026 1296-2074/© 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.