Scientific Studies of the Museum's Pieces at the Furniture Restauration Centre of Catalonia

In addition to the tasks of conservation and restoration that the collection team at the DHUB Museums have, these days they are analyzing the colours of five important Catalan pieces from the collection at the Museu de les Arts Decoratives: four wedding boxes and a 16th century wardrobe.
 
The research process, done in collaboration with the CRBMC (Centre de Restauració de Béns Mobles de Catalunya) and the Associació per l’Estudi del Moble, consist of taking samples in order to indentify the pigments, conducting stratigraphic analysis, and the study of instrumental analysis techniques such as ultraviolet radiation, IR refectography and x-rays, allowing the analysis of the state of conservation of all the colour layers, the knowledge of the origin and date of the work, the techniques and materials used, possible changes and interventions over time and the authenticity of the article.  
 
It's clear that chemistry is fundamental in the research process for the conservation and restauration of the works from musem collections.