Regalzier: study of a typical historical plaster finish in Venice

Regalzier is one of the most common types of plasterwork on medieval buildings in Venice until the 15th century but remained popular also during the next centuries in the north of Italy. Despite the widespread occurrence of this kind of finishing treatment, the information about the materials and the techniques used to create it is still scarce. For this reason and thanks to growing interest in traditional building construction techniques, a set of 21 samples were collected from a number of decorative elements and brick walls belonging to historical buildings of the 15th century in Venice. The samples were investigated by means of Scanning Electron Microscopy–Energy Dispersive X-ray microanalysis (SEM-EDX), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermal Analysis (TG-DSC) and Raman spectroscopy. The results allowed the characterization of the materials, contributing to the knowledge of traditional building construction techniques. This information is also important when considering the choice of proper restoration treatments, according to the recent concepts of sustainability, compatibility and use of local materials.