Discover the mysteries of Rembrandt's masterpiece

Many mysteries hidden behind the details can be seen with the naked eye in the painting "Susanna and the Elders" by the famous Dutch artist Rembrandt van Rijn has just been announced. recently in the Journal of Materials Science and Manufacturing.

Find the mysteries inside the painting "Susanna and the Elders"

To find out how Rembrandt created the masterpiece, art historians and researchers used two different imaging techniques and compared it to look at the hidden layers of the surface of The picture is nearly 400 years old.

Scan the "Susanna and the Elders" picture through X-rays. (Source: livescience.com)

The original technique used by researchers in the 1930s was to scan the picture through X-rays. The results showed that the artwork was heavily modified by pentimenti (a technique in painting used by artists want to draw over the old details).

Later, the researchers continued to find more hidden details in the painting in 1994, when they used the second technique of neutron activation autoradiography (neutron activation autoradiography). In particular, by observing the neutrons interacting with the picture, the researchers were able to identify the components in the pigments.

By using the two techniques, the researchers discovered a multi-layer painting . Experts have noticed some chemical components used in painting colors such as manganese and iron in earthy brown, lead in white and mercury in vermilion. Besides, the experts also discovered the elder's arm in the painting Rembrandt drew from his original sketch.

According to the researchers, the method of X-ray scanning gives the most clear results because the components appear separately in the results. This technique can be used to study chemical components on a wider range than autoradiography (autoradiography).

Rembrandt completed and signed the "Susanna and the Elders" picture in 1647. The painting is now hanging at Gemäldegalerie art museum in Berlin, Germany.