THE HOLY CROSS ALTARPIECE

POLYCHROME DECORATION 

Delicate elegant polychrome decoration with a preponderance of gold, both burnished and matte. Blue azurite is used to decorate tunics and the linings of capes while red and green glazes are used very discreetly. Brown lacquer applied to a silver undercoat of primer plays a major role in the decoration and flesh tones are semi-glossy,  in addition to being very precisely defined. Interior floors are tiled, whilst gold and green are used to represent exteriors.

Decorative techniques:

• Punching  decoration done with different-sized punches, concentric circles and toothed wheels to create patterns of branches, flowers, lines, rhomboids, etc.  

• Punching work used to write inscriptions.

• Blue, red, white and greyish-brown Sgrafitto used to create patterns of lines, clovers and flowers.

• Sgrafitto used to write inscriptions.

• Finely-pointed brushes used to paint inscriptions on gold and white.

• Mordant gilded flowers on red.

• Continuous applied brocade (details picked out in red and blue) both in gold and without; isolated applied brocade on one silver tunic coated with brown lacquer.

• Applications of vellum on some prayer books.