REVA
Research on Enamels of ancient stained glass Windows
Scientific responsibility :
- Gérald Lelong
Methodological axes :
Thematic fields :
Disciplinary sectors :
Partnership :
Funding :
- DIM PAMIR
Project ID : IDF-DIM-PAMIR-2024-9-014
Summary :
The Mairie de Paris, through its department for the conservation of religious and civil works of art (COARC), manages a significant heritage. This includes a collection of stained glass windows painted in enamel, grisaille and silver yellow, on display in the church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont. This collection is extraordinary in more ways than one: 12 of the 24 original windows mentioned in the archives have survived. It is one of the rare examples of 17th-century enamelled glass with enamels that has come down to us in an extraordinary state of preservation. These enamels have held up extremely well over time, both in terms of their colouring and the way the enamel physically clings to the glass.
Taking advantage of the restoration of these stained glass windows by the Vincent-Petit Manufacture (MVP), allowing access to the works, but also the handling of pieces of glass loosened from the panels (photo). The IMPMC’s PALM team, working with MVP and COARC, is proposing a major study into the physicochemistry of these rare enamels, which have received very little attention from materials science. The aims of the study are:
- to contribute to the criticism of authenticity based on physicochemical criteria
- to understand the mechanical and colour stability of enamels
- to identify the origins of raw materials through trace element analysis
To achieve this, the following methodology will be used:
- non-destructive studies of glasses (UV-VIS, IR and Raman spectroscopies, DRX)
- analysis of chemical compositions.
- reproduction of enamelled glasses and characterisation of the behaviour of the enamel on these model glasses. Two types of glass will be produced: monochrome ‘test’ glasses made in the laboratory and painted glasses made in the factory using traditional painter-glassmaker techniques.
Finally, COARC will provide documentary support during the study to help the trainee find the sources of the glass and raw materials, based on the archived documents available.
Caption: example of a bay in the Saint-Etienne-du-Mont enamelled and painted ensemble, after cleaning and loosening, photograph on light table.
