A multi-analytical study of funerary wall paintings in the Roman necropolis of Camino Viejo de Almodóvar (Córdoba, Spain)

The necropolis of Camino Viejo de Almodóvar (Córdoba, southern Spain) is one of several burial grounds dating from Roman Corduba . In this work, we used various optical and laser techniques, including optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy in combination with energy-dispersive spectroscopy and micro-Raman (μ-Raman) spectroscopy to identify the pigments used in wall painting fragments unearthed in excavations at the site. The results thus obtained were confirmed and supplemented by using X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. The experimental evidence provided by these techniques allowed us to identify the materials used to obtain the pigments, namely: lime, hematite, cinnabar, goethite, Egyptian blue, coal and green earth.