Nuclear Techniques for Cultural Heritage Research
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IAEA RADIATION TECHNOLOGY SERIES No. 2 IAEA RADIATION TECHNOLOGY SERIES No. 2 Scientifi c studies of art and archaeology are a necessary complement to cultural heritage conservation, preservation and investigation. Nuclear techniques, such as neutron activation analysis, X ray fl uorescence analysis and ion beam analysis, have a potential for non-destructive and reliable investigation of precious artefacts and materials, such as ceramics, stone, metal, and pigments from paintings. Such information can be helpful in repair of damaged objects, in identifi cation of fraudulent artefacts and in the appropriate categorization of historic artefacts. Nuclear Techniques for Cultural Heritage Research INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA ISBN 978–92–0–114510–9 ISSN 2220–7341 @ 11-20121_P1501_cover.indd 1 2011-09-26 10:46:06 IAEA RADIATION TECHNOLOGY SERIES PUBLICATIONS One of the main objectives of the IAEA Radioisotope Production and Radiation Technology programme is to enhance the expertise and capability of IAEA Member States in utilizing the methodologies for radiation processing, compositional analysis and industrial applications of radioisotope techniques in order to meet national needs as well as to assimilate new developments for improving industrial process efficiency and safety, development and characterization of value-added products, and treatment of pollutants/hazardous materials. Publications in the IAEA Radiation Technology Series provide information in the areas of: radiation processing and characterization of materials using ionizing radiation, and industrial applications of radiotracers, sealed sources and non-destructive testing. The publications have a broad readership and are aimed at meeting the needs of scientists, engineers, researchers, teachers and students, laboratory professionals, and instructors. International experts assist the IAEA Secretariat in drafting and reviewing these publications. Some of the publications in this series may also be endorsed or co-sponsored by international organizations and professional societies active in the relevant fields. There are two categories of publications: the IAEA Radiation Technology Series and the IAEA Radiation Technology Reports. IAEA RADIATION TECHNOLOGY SERIES Publications in this category present guidance information or methodologies and analyses of long term validity, for example protocols, guidelines, codes, standards, quality assurance manuals, best practices and high level technological and educational material. IAEA RADIATION TECHNOLOGY REPORTS In this category, publications complement information published in the IAEA Radiation Technology Series in the areas of: radiation processing of materials using ionizing radiation, and industrial applications of radiotracers, sealed sources and NDT. These publications include reports on current issues and activities such as technical meetings, the results of IAEA coordinated research projects, interim reports on IAEA projects, and educational material compiled for IAEA training courses dealing with radioisotope and radiopharmaceutical related subjects. In some cases, these reports may provide supporting material relating to publications issued in the IAEA Radiation Technology Series. All of these publications can be downloaded cost free from the IAEA web site: http://www.iaea.org/Publications/index.html Further information is available from: Marketing and Sales Unit International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna International Centre PO Box 100 1400 Vienna, Austria Readers are invited to provide feedback to the IAEA on these publications. Information may be provided through the IAEA web site, by mail at the address given above, or by email to: [email protected] 11-20121_P1501_cover.indd 2 2011-09-26 10:46:06 NUCLEAR TECHNIQUES FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE RESEARCH The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN GHANA NORWAY ALBANIA GREECE OMAN ALGERIA GUATEMALA PAKISTAN ANGOLA HAITI PALAU ARGENTINA HOLY SEE PANAMA ARMENIA HONDURAS PARAGUAY AUSTRALIA HUNGARY PERU AUSTRIA ICELAND PHILIPPINES AZERBAIJAN INDIA POLAND BAHRAIN INDONESIA PORTUGAL BANGLADESH IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF QATAR BELARUS IRAQ REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA BELGIUM IRELAND ROMANIA BELIZE ISRAEL RUSSIAN FEDERATION BENIN ITALY BOLIVIA JAMAICA SAUDI ARABIA BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA JAPAN SENEGAL BOTSWANA JORDAN SERBIA BRAZIL KAZAKHSTAN SEYCHELLES BULGARIA KENYA SIERRA LEONE BURKINA FASO KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE BURUNDI KUWAIT SLOVAKIA CAMBODIA KYRGYZSTAN SLOVENIA CAMEROON LATVIA SOUTH AFRICA CANADA LEBANON SPAIN CENTRAL AFRICAN LESOTHO SRI LANKA REPUBLIC LIBERIA SUDAN CHAD LIBYA SWEDEN CHILE LIECHTENSTEIN SWITZERLAND CHINA LITHUANIA SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC COLOMBIA LUXEMBOURG TAJIKISTAN CONGO MADAGASCAR THAILAND COSTA RICA MALAWI THE FORMER YUGOSLAV CÔTE D’IVOIRE MALAYSIA REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA CROATIA MALI TUNISIA CUBA MALTA TURKEY CYPRUS MARSHALL ISLANDS UGANDA CZECH REPUBLIC MAURITANIA UKRAINE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC MAURITIUS UNITED ARAB EMIRATES OF THE CONGO MEXICO DENMARK MONACO UNITED KINGDOM OF DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MONGOLIA GREAT BRITAIN AND ECUADOR MONTENEGRO NORTHERN IRELAND EGYPT MOROCCO UNITED REPUBLIC EL SALVADOR MOZAMBIQUE OF TANZANIA ERITREA MYANMAR UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ESTONIA NAMIBIA URUGUAY ETHIOPIA NEPAL UZBEKISTAN FINLAND NETHERLANDS VENEZUELA FRANCE NEW ZEALAND VIETNAM GABON NICARAGUA YEMEN GEORGIA NIGER ZAMBIA GERMANY NIGERIA ZIMBABWE The Agency’s Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is “to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world’’. IAEA Radiation Technology Series No. 2 NUCLEAR TECHNIQUES FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 2011 COPYRIGHT NOTICE All IAEA scientific and technical publications are protected by the terms of the Universal Copyright Convention as adopted in 1952 (Berne) and as revised in 1972 (Paris). The copyright has since been extended by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Geneva) to include electronic and virtual intellectual property. Permission to use whole or parts of texts contained in IAEA publications in printed or electronic form must be obtained and is usually subject to royalty agreements. Proposals for non-commercial reproductions and translations are welcomed and considered on a case-by-case basis. Enquiries should be addressed to the IAEA Publishing Section at: Marketing and Sales Unit, Publishing Section International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna International Centre PO Box 100 1400 Vienna, Austria fax: +43 1 2600 29302 tel.: +43 1 2600 22417 email: [email protected] http://www.iaea.org/books © IAEA, 2011 Printed by the IAEA in Austria September 2011 STI/PUB/1501 IAEA Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Nuclear techniques for cultural heritage research. — Vienna : International Atomic Energy Agency, 2011. p. ; 24 cm. — (IAEA radiation technology series, ISSN 2220–7341 ; no. 2) STI/PUB/1501 ISBN 978–92–0–114510–9 Includes bibliographical references. 1. Nuclear technology — Archaeology. 2. Cultural property — Valuation. 3. Radiocarbon dating — Archaeology. I. International Atomic Energy Agency. II. Series. IAEAL 11–00686 FOREWORD Cultural heritage (‘national heritage’ or just ‘heritage’) is the legacy of physical artefacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and restored for the benefit of future generations. Physical or ‘tangible cultural heritage’ includes buildings and historical places, monuments, artefacts, etc., that are considered worthy of preservation for the future. These include preservation and conservation of objects significant to the archaeology, architecture, science or technology of a specific culture. Scientific studies of art and archaeology present a necessary complement for cultural heritage conservation, preservation and investigation. As cultural heritage objects are frequently unique and non-replaceable, non-destructive techniques are mandatory and, hence, nuclear techniques have a high potential to be applied to study these valuable objects. Nuclear techniques, such as neutron activation analysis (NAA), X ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis or ion beam analysis (IBA), have a potential for non-destructive and reliable investigation of precious materials, such as ceramics, stone, metal or pigments from paintings. Such information can help to repair damaged objects adequately, distinguish fraudulent artefacts from real artefacts and assist archaeologists in the appropriate categorization of historical artefacts. Although the application of scientific methods to art and archaeological materials has a long tradition, it is due to the stimulation of institutions such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the IAEA that applications of natural science techniques are increasingly being accepted by museum curators and cultural heritage researchers. The IAEA as a leading supporter of the peaceful use of nuclear technology assists laboratories in its Member States to apply and develop nuclear methods for cultural heritage research for the benefit of socioeconomic development in emerging economies. The IAEA had in the past initiated several projects