Study of Mexican Colonial Mural Paintings: An In-situ Non-Invasive Approach
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Study of Mexican Colonial Mural Paintings: An In-situ Non-Invasive Approach José Luis Ruvalcaba-Sil, Malinalli Wong-Rueda, Maria Angelica Garcia-Bucio, Edgar Casanova-Gonzalez, Mayra Dafne Manrique-Ortega, Valentina Aguilar-Melo, Pieterjan Claes, and Dulce Maria Aguilar-Tellez. Instituto de Física, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Circuito de la Investigación Científica s/n, Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico D.F. 04510, Mexico. e-mail: [email protected] ABSTRACT Colonial mural painting developed in Mexico in XVI century after the conquest of the pre-Hispanic cultures following the evangelization process little information exists about the chronology of the paintings and workshops, the painters, the pictorial techniques or the materiality of this art work. In this work, we present the non-invasive methodology of study of the pigments and other components of nine mural paintings in three colonial Augustinian ex-convents located in Epazoyucan, Actopan and Ixmiquilpan, in the state of Hidalgo, central Mexico. These places were selected not only because of the inherent value and iconographic characteristics of the paintings, which date to the XVI and XVII century, but also because they are in the same region and are well preserved and in good condition. Then it is possible to compare their materiality and get new information to answer to some of questions related to these paintings. X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and Raman spectroscopy were conducted using portable equipment on scaffolds after a global examination under ultraviolet light. We were able to distinguish between different pigments used for different colors such as vermillion, orpiment, and a copper pigment, for the bright red, gold yellow, and green, respectively. These pigments are characteristic of the known Mexican Colonial color palette. Apart from this, we also found the presence of indigo in the blues, minium, and cochineal. A first comparison among the mural paintings of the three sites indicates different palettes and painting periods. INTRODUCTION The Spanish colonization of what is currently known as North and Central America was initiated by the discovery of the continent at the end of XV century. From this moment on, Spanish conquerors arrived in the ‘New World’ in search of wealth, both from precious metals and other valuable objects (such as, new species and new pigments) and from the discovery of new trade routes. A catholic evangelization rapidly followed the military conquest when missionaries of different orders came to bring the word of God to the indigenous inhabitants of the country [1]. The collapse of the Aztecs capital, Tenochtitlan, in 1521 marks the beginning of 300 year hegemony of Spanish rulers in Mexico, which from that time is known as New Spain. From the beginning of the conquest, the evangelization of the peoples was a priority for the Spanish, and the first Catholic orders arrived in Mexico shortly after the fall of the Aztec rule. Their role was to obtain a closer relationship with the indigenous community than was possible fo
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