“Stories of the Life of Saint George”: Materials and Techniques from a Barbelli Mural Painting

Gian Giacomo Inchiocchio (1604-1656), better known as Barbelli, was one of the main exponents of the Lombard painting of the 17th century. He is attributed with a prolific body of work, encompassing a wide range of drawings, mural and oil paintings. However, despite his broad production, there are still many open questions regarding his painting techniques and materials. In this paper, a multi-analytical study of the cycle Stories of Saint George’s life that originally decorated the presbytery of the parish church of Casaletto Vaprio (Cremona, Italy) was performed, combining non-invasive techniques with the characterization of selected micro samples. Results show that Barbelli used a very limited number of inorganic pigments, often mixing them together to create different colours and shades. Remains of caseinate and degradation products (i.e., weddellite and whewellite) related to the strappo intervention were also highlighted. The study helped to decipher the materials and technique of this painting, providing data that can be used as a reference to study his extensive production.