Tracking Where the Chips Fall
Feb 1, 2006 — Where others see a work of art, Thomas J. Tague Jr. sees an opportunity — and a challenge. Art conservators, museum directors, interested individuals and sometimes the general public want to know if a painting or an antiquity is real or fake. Authentication involves making sure that the components of the work, such as the pigments and the canvas, are consistent with its presumed age and origin.
Researchers, therefore, analyze paint chips and other small fragments. This is easier said than...