Broad spectral range reflectance imaging spectroscopy (BR-RIS) from the near UV through the mid–infrared (IR) (350 to 25,000 nm or 28,571 to 400 cm⁻¹) was investigated as an imaging modality to provide maps of organic and inorganic artists’ materials in paintings. While visible–to–near-IR (NIR) reflectance and elemental x-ray fluorescence (XRF) imaging spectroscopies have been used for in situ mapping, each method alone is insufficient for robust identification. Combining the two improves results but requires complex data processing. To test BR-RIS, image cubes from early Italian Renaissance illuminated manuscripts were acquired using two spectrometers. Maps of pigments, including trace minerals associated with mined azurite, and their associated binding media were made. BR-RIS has a more straightforward analysis approach as implemented here than visible-to-NIR, mid-IR, or XRF imaging spectroscopy alone and offers the largest amount of macroscale information for mapping artists’ materials by comparison.

Visible and infrared reflectance imaging spectroscopy is one of the several non-invasive techniques used during Operation Night Watch for the study of Rembrandt’s iconic masterpiece The Night Watch (1642). The goals of this project include the identification and mapping of the artists’ materials, providing information about the painting technique used as well as documenting the painting’s current state and ultimately determining the possible conservation plan. The large size of the painting (3.78 m by 4.53 m) and the diversity of the technical investigations being performed make Operation Night Watch the largest research project ever undertaken at the Rijksmuseum. To construct a complete reflectance image cube at a high spatial resolution (168 µm²) and spectral resolution (2.54 to 6 nm), the painting was imaged with two high-sensitivity line scanning hyperspectral cameras (VNIR 400 to 1000 nm, 2.54 nm, and SWIR 900 to 2500 nm, 6 nm). Given the large size of the painting, a custom computer-controlled 3-D imaging frame was constructed to move each camera, along with lights, across the painting surface. A third axis, normal to the painting, was added along with a distance-sensing system which kept the cameras in focus during the scanning. A total of 200 hyperspectral image swaths were collected, mosaicked and registered to a high-resolution color image to sub-pixel accuracy using a novel registration algorithm. The preliminary analysis of the VNIR and SWIR reflectance images has identified many of the pigments used and their distribution across the painting. The SWIR, in particular, has provided an improved visualization of the preparatory sketches and changes in the painted composition. These data sets, when combined with the results from the other spectral imaging modalities and paint sample analyses, will provide the most complete understanding of the materials and painting techniques used by Rembrandt in The Night Watch.