Evening Lecture: Painting the past: using geological techniques to identify artists' pigments in Roman archaeology

Dr Ruth Siddall, University College London, will present a lecture entitled “Painting the past: using geological techniques to identify artists’ pigments in Roman archaeology”.

The analysis of artists’ pigments and paints can be routinely analysed using polarizing light microscopy. This technique can also provide information on pigment provenance, manufacture and processing and reveal colours produced by mixing pigments. This talk will present some analyses of the pigments and discuss the techniques used in Roman-period painting in the British Isles and across the Empire.