Pigments and techniques of Hellenistic Apulian tomb painting

The wall paintings of five Hellenistic tombs in Apulia were analysed using a multi-technique approach to discern the painting techniques used and contextualise them within the phenome-non of Hellenistic tomb painting in Southern Italy. In particular, the question was asked whether technical knowledge played a role in the reception of Hellenistic artistic models and whether this knowledge was present locally. Raman and IR spectroscopies were used to identify pigments, colourants, and binders; light and electron microscopy were used to determine the structural characteristics of the paint layers and recognise the manufacturing technique. Analyses identified a fresco application for the Tomba dei Cavalieri (Arpi) and a dry application for the Canosian hypogea. The palette—typical for Hellenistic tomb painting in Southern Italy, Etruria and Mac-edonia—was composed of lime (white), charcoal (black), hematite (red), goethite (yellow), and Egyptian blue (blue). In the Tomba della Nike (Arpi), meanwhile, two particularly refined pre-paratory layers were observed. The palette was enriched with precious cinnabar and madder lake. The colouring components of the root were mixed with clay and K-alum applied on an additional layer of lime. The use of madder lake and a pink background link the painting to the polychrome Daunian pottery, and the contribution of a local workshop to the decoration of this tomb thus seems plausible