The experts of Centro Conservazione e Restauro La Venaria Reale  (CCR) carried out the conservation treatment of the mummy with the painted shroud.

The intervention required a combination of different methods, some of which particularly innovative. Conservators planned in detail the activities aimed at both structurally reinforcing the shroud and removing the layer of dirt on the pictorial surface, and, at the same time, tidying up and consolidating the inner bandages, so as to ensure its preservation over time.

To start: condition reporting

By a first visual inspection, conservators found that the shroud was originally decorated pictorially over its entire surface and was held in place by fabric ties. Only few fragments of fabric ties, fixed with a dark-colored resin, are still in place.

Under the painted shroud, they also observed a complex overlapping bandage system and a further undecorated linen cloth shroud.

The diagnostic analysis

The CCR’s experts also observed the mummy by means of non-invasive multispectral diagnostic investigations, carried out to map the materials present on the surface, to check for the presence of a preparatory drawing and to start examining differences in the pictorial palette.

To investigate the artistic technique, further non-invasive analyses were performed, and a few grains of the materials to be analyzed were taken for sampling. Optical and electronic microscopy made it possible to identify the layering of materials. Analyses were also carried out on the textile fibers to understand the nature of the yarns used and to identify any resinous substances or dyes possibly applied to the bandages.

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Ready for cleaning

The mummy had a consistent layer of surface deposits that, after the first phase of analysis, were removed by micro-aspiration, caring of protecting the tip of vacuum cleaner with a fine-mesh net to avoid any interference with the original material.

To remove superficial dirt was, placed on top of the rough, porous and extremely fragile surface, aqueous solutions confined in high-retentive hydrogels (CSGI Peggy®gels) were applied, which allowed a controlled wetting of the surfaces, preliminary testing their highly targeted absorption of dirt.

This cleaning made it possible to discern the original palette as well as many details of the decoration.

The synergy between traditional and innovative methods

The conservation treatment of the mummy required a variety of methods: needle consolidation and the application of specially dyed crepeline silk supportson the wrappings underneath the painted shroud. For the structural recovery of the shroud, which is characterized by the coexistence of fabric and pictorial materials, the conservators chose to proceed by reordering the weaving of existing tears and mending the yarns by means of the application of nanostructured celluloses in aqueous solution.

The use of cellulose based adhesives is a tested method documented in literature. Preliminary experimental activities enabled the study of the performance of the nanostructured cellulose and verified the strength of the joints as well as comparing their proportionate toughness in relation to that of the archaeological threads. The visual compatibility of this type of intervention was also analyzed.

Finally, the mummy was handled with first aid equipment, limiting as much as possible the risk of damaging the remains.

Detail of the head of the mummy with the painted shroud, pre- and post-restoration

A study of colors

The painting on the shroud depicts the main shapes of a face and upper body, while the lower limbs appear to be covered in symmetrically arranged 'feathers' on either side of some hieroglyphics which appear on a yellow background as a pseudo-inscription. The painted arms lie alongside the body and are decorated with bracelets.

The face is painted on a deep pink background and gives prominence to the eyes of the deceased, which are outlined in black both for their pupils, drawn on a white background, and for the eyebrows. Other anatomical details, such as the ears, nose, mouth, profile of the face and neck, are rendered in a more intense red colour. A black wig and a white band with geometric decorations on the forehead frame the face.

The following colors characterize the polychrome decoration:

1. White: calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), a pigment of natural origin, derived from carbonate rocks and mollusk shells, known and widely used since antiquity.

2. Blue: Egyptian blue (CaO-CuO-4SiO₂ basic silicate of copper and calcium) is an artificial mineral pigment. The original formula involved sand, calcium carbonate, a copper compound of either malachite or pure copper and a sodium salt to act as an agent to lower the melting temperature of the mixture. It was prepared by heating the mixture in more or less fixed proportions in a furnace. The invention of the pigment is attributed to the Egyptians of the First Dynasty.

3. Dark red: obtained from ochres (iron oxides with clay impurities), minerals widespread in nature. Ochres have been known and used since ancient times.

4. Orange red: minimum (Pb₃O₄ lead oxide) widespread in Egyptian painting from Roman times, it is found in limited quantities in its natural state and, alternatively, can be obtained by heating easily decomposable lead salts (litharge or lead oxide) to over 700°C or by calcining natural cerussite or artificial white lead (basic lead carbonate) at 900-1,000°C

5. Black: carbon-based pigment. Carbon-based pigments form a group of dark-colored materials that have been used since antiquity. Traditionally, it was obtained by burning resin or charcoal from softwood or from the smoke of a flame.

6. Yellow: scientific analysis suggests the use of an organic yellow compound (saffron, reseda, etc.), generally used for dyes.

7. Pink: obtained from a combination of white (calcium carbonate and gypsum) and an organic dye (red lacquer).

The La Venaria Reale Restoration and Conservation Centre

The Centro Conservazione e Restauro La Venaria Reale was established in 2005 as a foundation for advanced training and research in the field of cultural heritage conservation.

Housed in the former 18th-century stables of the Venaria Royal Palace, just outside Turin, the Centre has nine conservation laboratories, a photographic laboratory, and scientific laboratories for diagnostic activities.

The Centre hosts an advanced training and study school for conservators and organizes a master degree course for the training of cultural heritage conservators together with the University of Turin.

The conservation treatment was carried out in collaboration with the University of Pisa’s Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, the Center for Colloid and Surface Science, Department of Chemistry, the University of Florence and with the support of MUR (FOE E-RIHS IT and PON Research and Innovation 2014-2020, CCI: 2014IT16M2OP005).