Painting materials investigation from dragu wooden church, Salaj county

The old wooden church from Dragu, Salaj County, was built on the hill of Dragu village between 1806 and 1809, according to the inscription found inside. The investigations targeted the imperial gates (the main entry from the nave to the altar used by the priest during church service and adorned with painted icons and elaborated wood sculpture) and aimed to identify the materials used for their manufacture: the wood species, pigments, ground, binders. For the identification of materials two spectroscopic methods were employed: XRF (X-ray fluorescence) and FTIR (Fourier transform IR absorption). The employed materials are: linden wood for the imperial gates, gypsum for ground; lead white, Prussian blue, gold and silver leaf, iron red, lead red, cinnabar, realgar, orpiment, Scheele's green for pigments; egg yolk and bone glue as binders. Keywords: XRF--non-destructive spectroscopy, FTIR absorption destructive spectroscopy, wooden church, imperial gates, painting materials, pigments