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Conserving the Past for the Future

A Conservation Tour

The Mass of Saint Gregory: Examining a Painting Using Infrared Reflectography


The Mass of Saint Gregory
Hans Baldung Grien (German, 1484/85-1545)
The Mass of Saint Gregory, 1511
Oil on panel, 89.2 x 125 cm
Gift of the Hanna Fund 1952.112

Infrared Reflectography

Infrared reflectography was developed in the 1960s as a method for seeing things not visible to the naked eye. It is used to reveal areas below the paint layer, which are reached by the longer wavelengths in the infrared range of the light spectrum. A newer technique called focal plane array technology optimizes viewing in the infrared bandwidth where one can see underdrawings and underpaintings. This includes the part of the light spectrum between 1100-2500 nm (nm = nanometer, a measure of wavelengths). Several methods are now used to "capture" individual details of underdrawing in paintings. These are taken in a sequence and assembled in a composite called an infrared reflectogram. The reflectograms of The Mass of Saint Gregory were taken in 1982, using the Hamamatsu N 214 infrared vidicon, or video image converter.
image
Detail of the underdrawing for the architecture and staff in the upper right corner of the picture. The initial idea appears to have included more elaborate capitals on the pillars. The top of the staff has also been changed in the painting. IRR: copyright Prof. Dr. Molly Faries/Stichting RKD



Page 5 of 9 | On the next page: The Underdrawing