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This study offers fresh insights into the technical and stylistic exchanges between Flemish and Portuguese panel painting during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. By comparing two contemporaneous works, we trace Flemish influence in Portugal through a detailed materials and techniques analysis. Non-invasive, in situ methods—including energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (XRF), macro-photography (MP), infrared reflectography (IRR), and dendrochronology—were used to examine each painting’s wooden support, ground layer, underdrawing, and pigment stratigraphy. Select micro-sampling analyses—micro-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (μ-FTIR), scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and micro-Raman spectroscopy (µ-Raman)—provided complementary data on binder and pigment composition. While both paintings share nearly identical pigments and layering sequences and employ comparable coating techniques, their ground compositions differ subtly. Notably, the Flemish work features extensive gold-leaf application, whereas underdrawing execution takes on principal importance in the Portuguese example. Together, these findings reveal that Jorge Afonso’s workshop developed a distinct Portuguese method—rooted in Flemish practices disseminated by Quentin Metsys—yet adapted to local materials and aesthetic priorities.

Reconstructions were used as a tool to investigate the use of charcoal and black stone as underdrawing materials in sixteenth century panel paintings with white or off-white preparatory layers. Research was based on the examination of a group of sixteenth century panel paintings by the Portuguese Mannerist painter Francisco João (doc. 1558–1595) and his workshop. Analysis of the original underdrawing material in cross-sections, using microscopic and spectroscopic techniques was not always conclusive. Based on materials thought to be employed by Francisco João and on data collected from sixteenth and seventeenth century European technical treatises along with published analytical studies of panel paintings with white or off-white preparatory layers from this period, reconstructions were performed using charcoal (untreated and oiled—as described in contemporary literature) and natural black stone over different preparatory surfaces. Microscopic analyses of cross-sections from reconstructions were made to assist the discussion of the behaviour of the dry underdrawing media within the paint structure. Results revealed that whereas charcoal could be easily removed if drawn directly over gesso, it would remain fixed when drawn over a ground treated with an oil-based intermediate layer, even when the latter was completely dry to the touch. The persistence of a charcoal drawing when applied over oil challenged the widely disseminated assumption that naturally occurring black stone, which makes a permanent mark, had been employed more frequently than charcoal since the latter appeared to be easily disturbed and hence transitory. The very lengthy curing time for a drying oil could be responsible for fixing the friable media. Reconstructions further showed that oiled charcoal is easily prepared and agreeable to use on any type of surface, where it remains without smudging. Finally, research suggests that the painter’s choice of underdrawing material is closely dependent on the nature of the binder of intermediate layers and on the position of the underdrawing layout within the paint structure.

This paper reports the first analytical approach carried out on two working palettes by Portuguese modernist master Almada Negreiros, found in 1991 behind old wood cabinets at the DN building in Lisbon. This is the only known occasion Almada left behind the color experiments done before starting to paint in the nearby walls and as such, it is a unique opportunity to analyze the materials and painting techniques that were originally used. The analytical setup comprised in loco technical photography in Vis, UVF and NIR; p-OM, spectrophotometry in Vis and h-EDXRF, complemented by OM-Vis, µ-FT-IR and VP-SEM-EDS of painting micro-samples and pigments in powder form. Preliminary results suggested the use of fresco painting technique and revealed some technical details, such as the use of a coarse lime sand finishing mortar mixed with natural vegetable fibers, and the extensive use of cadmium-based pigments that were not commonly used (or even recommended) in an alkaline environment. The Cd pigments were used alone or in mixtures with Fe based pigments in the warm hues and with cobalt and ultramarine blue pigments in some green paint layers. No clear evidence of organic materials that could have been used as binders was detected.

In recent decades, many works have been devoted to the study of materials and painting techniques used to produce illuminated manuscripts. If the analyses were once largely invasive, the approach has become increasingly more in situ and non-invasive over the years. This work presents the results of the analysis of the Portuguese Charter of Évora, an illuminated manuscript that dates back to 1501, combining an elemental mapping technique (MA-XRF) with the non-invasive imaging techniques of infrared reflectography and digital microscopy. Remarkably, this approach allowed us to obtain unexpected results regarding the chronology of production of the illumination of the view of the City of Évora and of the Charter of Évora itself, posing new questions for art history on the political, social and artistic context of the early 16th century City of Évora.

The painting The Descent from the Cross, painted in 1620 by Pedro Nunes (1586–1637), presents two large figures with orange-coloured fabrics with conservation problems. Through the analysis of two samples with several analytical techniques, especially scanning electron microscopy combined with X-ray spectroscopy and Raman microscopy, it was possible to conclude that the orange colour is due to a complex artificial pigment made of amorphous arsenic sulphide. It essentially consists of spherical particles obtained by sublimation and condensation, possibly from orpiment, which ended up being joined with irregularly shaped particles resulting from crushing of the residual fraction obtained by solidification and fusion. This is a rare documented case of the extensive use of artificial arsenic sulphides in European easel painting, especially outside Italy. The conservation problems can be explained by the great sensitivity of the arsenic sulphides to photodegradation and the formation of powdery compounds.

A diachronic, multi-analytical approach combining EDXRF, µFTIR, µRaman, SEM-EDS, and Py-GC/MS has been adopted with the aim to study for the first time the painting materials used to decorate Egyptian funerary masks and sarcophagi ranging from the Late Period to the Roman Period and stored in the Archaeological National Museum (MNA) and the Carmo Archaeological Museum (MAC) of Lisbon and the Natural History Museum of the University in Oporto (MNH-FCUP). Results indicate that yellow and red ochres, realgar, cinnabar, Egyptian blue, and Egyptian green were used as pigments while chalk served as the preparatory layer. Over the 1000-year timeline of the studied artifacts, the palette remained remarkably consistent with previous findings as exemplified by cinnabar being used for red pigments in samples only dated after the Ptolemaic period. The presence of Sn in Egyptian blue and Egyptian green pigments used in one sample suggests the use of recycled bronze scraps during pigment production. Black pigments in two Late Period masks were found to be produced by mixing Egyptian blue with red ochre suggesting either a hitherto unknown method for production of purple pigments in the Egyptian palette or, alternatively, an attempt to create a specific hue or shade of dark brown or black. The results of this study contribute to further expand the database of Ancient Egyptian painting materials while at the same time helping to valorize three important Egyptian collections in Portugal.

The tendentious decrease in global arable land and the fast increment in world population will inevitably lead to a critical point. It is therefore imperative to protect crops from pathogen attack. Their deleterious impact on human health is not better, with several invasive infections reaching mortality rates up to 80%. The door is definitely open for biological control, based on molecular interactions between host and pathogen. The remarkable coding capacity of oligosaccharides, far superior to those of nucleotides and amino acids, justifies the emergence of the sugar code as the third life code. The word exoglycome is proposed to represent the oligosaccharide side chains presented at the outer surface of cell membranes, thus excluding the cell wall carbohydrates. The exoglycome plays a fundamental role in cell-cell recognition, in distinction between self from non-self, in the warfare between host and pathogen before infection is established, and in certain diseases such as cancer. Unlike pathogen cell wall carbohydrates, the exoglycome has been neglected as a target for developing effective ways to control disease. Pathogens often induce changes in their cell wall and/or exoglycome to elude and/or circumvent host defences. Identification of such host-induced alterations may prove extremely important for both treatment and diagnosis. Reading the sugar-encoded messages is mainly played by a class of carbohydrate-binding receptors called lectins. The available evidence strongly suggests that a large number of lectins remain to be discovered. Their role in defence should not be underestimated. A high-throughput procedure capable of single-step isolation of novel lections from previously unknown biological samples has recently been developed.

This study presents an integrated archaeometric analysis of three key Roman mosaics (Tethys, Erotes, and Scrollworks) from the Marroquíes Altos site (Jaén, Spain), currently displayed at the Museum of Jaén. The aim was to enhance their historical value and define their regional features within the Upper Guadalquivir Valley. The innovative, non-destructive methodology integrated systematic photogrammetric digitization with portable spectroscopic techniques (handheld Raman and h-XRF), which was essential as the mosaics are wall-mounted. A large dataset was generated and processed using multivariate statistical analysis (PCA). Results confirmed the use of locally sourced limestone but, crucially, identified the widespread presence and selective use of ironstone (haematite) across two of the three mosaics. This unique finding strongly supports the existence of a distinctive regional practice within the Roman mosaic school of Jaén, setting the local production apart from other Roman mosaics in Europe and advancing a comprehensive understanding of the region’s material culture.

The National Museum of Ancient Art in Lisbon (MNAA) hosts the most important Portuguese public collection of art. Among its different types of artworks, a set of six Chinese wallpaper panels from the eighteenth century is present; they represent the production of porcelain and have been donated to the Museum in 1949. Despite the large interest that has raised around these kinds of artefacts, few technical studies have been carried out to date on Chinese wallpapers. In this study, a non-invasive investigation of the wallpaper panels from the MNAA by means of portable devices is described. More specifically, the combined use of technical photography (namely UVF, Vis and IR photography), Vis-NIR-FORS and EDXRF allowed to carry out a preliminary diagnostic survey, which higlighted an improper handling of the wallpapers prior to their donation to the Museum, and poor conservation conditions of the paper sheets. Furthermore, it allowed for the identification of the painting technique, the main pigments, and their distribution; the presence of inorganic pigments (such as vermilion and lead white) and organic dyes (e.g. anthraquinone-based red dyes and indigo), used both as overlapping layers and mixtures, has been determined.

This paper reports the preliminary diagnostic survey of the six controversial mural paintings painted in 1946–49 at the Maritime Station of Rocha do Conde de Óbidos in Lisbon, considered the artistic epitome of Almada Negreiros mural painting art. Four research questions drove this research: a) What are the main decay phenomena present and their sources? b) Which are the paint layers most affected, and are they linked to a particular pigment? c) Is there any relation between the painting technique used and the deterioration or stability of the paint layers and pigments? And finally, d) Are there differences in the decay phenomena present in both maritime stations of Alcântara? The analytical setup comprised in-situ and laboratory analysis by way of technical photography documentation (TP), handled optical microscopy (h-OM), handheld X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), complemented by optical microscopy of microfragments and cross sections (OM-Vis-UV), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), and Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS).The first results indicate flaking of the paint layers as the main and most severe deterioration feature present in most of the murals. The yellow ochres, browns, blacks, and light greens are the colours most affected, showing different degrees of loss. The pictorial technique used, the presence and action of soluble salts in the structure, and even the products used as adhesives during past interventions might be the root of this phenomenon.