Pulsed Thermography Applied to the Study of Cultural Heritage

• Published in: Applied sciences Vol. 7; no. 10; p. 1010
• Main Authors: Mercuri, Fulvio, Orazi, Noemi, Paoloni, Stefano, Cicero, Cristina, Zammit, Ugo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 29-09-2017
• Subjects: 3D imaging; Artefacts; Bronzes; Cultural heritage; Cultural resources; Damage detection; Fault detection; Historic artifacts; illuminations; Infrared analysis; Infrared radiation; Maintenance; Maintenance management; paint decorations; pulsed infrared thermography; Stratigraphy; thermal diffusivity; Thermography
• ISSN: 2076-3417; 2076-3417
• DOI: 10.3390/app7101010

In this paper, an overview of the recent applications of pulsed infrared thermography is presented. Pulsed infrared thermography, which provides stratigraphic information by analyzing the heat diffusion process within the sample after a thermal perturbation, is applied to the investigation of different kinds of cultural heritage artefacts. In particular, it is used to analyze repairs, decorative elements, and casting faults on bronzes, to detect texts hidden or damaged in ancient books/documents, and to characterize paint decorations. Moreover, the integration of pulsed infrared thermography and three-dimensional shape recording methods is proposed in order to provide a three-dimensional representation of the thermographic results. Finally, it is shown how the obtained thermographic results may be crucial from the historical and artistic points of view for understanding the modus operandi of a specific artist and/or of a workshop and for reconstructing the manufacturing process of the analyzed artefacts.