Analysis of historic paint samples using thin-section analysis, including specifications for repainting works.

Historic paint analysis using resin-mounted samples preserves the fragile, layered structure of a paint sample so its stratigraphy—the sequence of paint, varnish, and ground layers—can be examined under a microscope and analysed with various scientific instruments.

A small sample, often no larger than a 5 mm square, is carefully removed from the historic wall or window using a fine chisel or scalpel. To protect this delicate fragment and keep it rigid for cutting, it is cast in a clear resin block (typically epoxy). The resin hardens, encasing the sample.

The hardened resin block is ground down and polished with progressively finer abrasives until the paint sample is exposed at the surface. This reveals a flat, "cross-sectional" view of the paint layers, akin to looking at the side of a layer cake. This step is critical for seeing the true stratigraphy without distortion.

The analyst places the polished cross-section under a high-powered microscope. Under reflected, transmitted, and ultraviolet light, the analyst can visually distinguish the number of layers, their thickness, colour, texture, and the presence of any dirt or restoration layers between original coats.

M Womersleys have over twenty years' experience of interpreting samples and dealing with historic paint recipes. Whether it is at Robert Adams Interior or a 1960's painted pit top in Arbroath, we have the experience to understand and interpret the visible paint layers, the pigments used, how the paints were originally manufactured, and the aesthetic principles that guided the interior decorators.

Results take around one to two weeks to process. Please use the following postal address: 

Dr Mark Womersley at 

M. Womersleys Ltd

Office 2.18
Holmfield Mill
Holdsworth Road
Halifax
HX3 6SN

www.mwomersleys.co.uk