Probing the chemistry of CdS paints in <i>The Scream</i> by in situ noninvasive spectroscopies and synchrotron radiation x-ray techniques.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 32440540.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/sciadv.aay3514 and PMC identifier 7228759.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC.
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Abstract
The degradation of cadmium sulfide (CdS)-based oil paints is a phenomenon potentially threatening the iconic painting <i>The Scream</i> (ca. 1910) by Edvard Munch (Munch Museum, Oslo) that is still poorly understood. Here, we provide evidence for the presence of cadmium sulfate and sulfites as alteration products of the original CdS-based paint and explore the external circumstances and internal factors causing this transformation. Macroscale in situ noninvasive spectroscopy studies of the painting in combination with synchrotron-radiation x-ray microspectroscopy investigations of a microsample and artificially aged mock-ups show that moisture and mobile chlorine compounds are key factors for promoting the oxidation of CdS, while light (photodegradation) plays a less important role. Furthermore, under exposure to humidity, parallel/secondary reactions involving dissolution, migration through the paint, and recrystallization of water-soluble phases of the paint are associated with the formation of cadmium sulfates.