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Article

Characterization and Analysis of Gypsum Alabaster Constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” Statue by Gabriele Brunelli (Bologna, 1615–1682)

by
Camilla Favale
1,
Gianfranco Ulian
1,
Gian Carlo Grillini
2,
Daniele Moro
1 and
Giovanni Valdrè
1,*
1
Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Piazza Porta San Donato 1, 40126 Bologna, Italy
2
Academy of Fine Art of Bologna, Via delle Belle Arti, 54, 40126 Bologna, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Heritage 2025, 8(12), 543; https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8120543
Submission received: 17 November 2025 / Revised: 9 December 2025 / Accepted: 15 December 2025 / Published: 17 December 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Cultural Heritage)
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Abstract

This study is part of a broader conservation and restoration project of the 17th-century statue “Santissimo Salvatore” attributed to the Bolognese sculptor Gabriele Brunelli (1615–1682). This sculpture was traditionally classified as a marble statue, i.e., primarily composed of calcium carbonate. However, the careful diagnostic analyses conducted during the present work of restoration revealed that, instead, the sculpture is made of gypsum alabaster, a material predominantly composed of calcium sulphate hydrate (CaSO4·2H2O). In the present research, a multi-analytical investigation was carried out using X-Ray Powder Diffraction (XRPD), Field Emission Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-ESEM) with Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS), and confocal Raman microspectrometry. Here, we report detailed and updated analytical data of the material constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” statue by Gabriele Brunelli. These data were found extremely useful to plan and accomplish the restoration work in detail: (i) the suitable conservation project of the artwork, (ii) the reassessment of the knowledge on the artist’s sculptural production, and (iii) gaining more information about the material used in the 17th-century Bolognese sculptural context.
Keywords: gypsum alabaster; Gabriele Brunelli; statue; restoration; XRPD; FE-ESEM; raman microspectroscopy; organic contamination gypsum alabaster; Gabriele Brunelli; statue; restoration; XRPD; FE-ESEM; raman microspectroscopy; organic contamination

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MDPI and ACS Style

Favale, C.; Ulian, G.; Grillini, G.C.; Moro, D.; Valdrè, G. Characterization and Analysis of Gypsum Alabaster Constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” Statue by Gabriele Brunelli (Bologna, 1615–1682). Heritage 2025, 8, 543. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8120543

AMA Style

Favale C, Ulian G, Grillini GC, Moro D, Valdrè G. Characterization and Analysis of Gypsum Alabaster Constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” Statue by Gabriele Brunelli (Bologna, 1615–1682). Heritage. 2025; 8(12):543. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8120543

Chicago/Turabian Style

Favale, Camilla, Gianfranco Ulian, Gian Carlo Grillini, Daniele Moro, and Giovanni Valdrè. 2025. "Characterization and Analysis of Gypsum Alabaster Constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” Statue by Gabriele Brunelli (Bologna, 1615–1682)" Heritage 8, no. 12: 543. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8120543

APA Style

Favale, C., Ulian, G., Grillini, G. C., Moro, D., & Valdrè, G. (2025). Characterization and Analysis of Gypsum Alabaster Constituting the “Santissimo Salvatore” Statue by Gabriele Brunelli (Bologna, 1615–1682). Heritage, 8(12), 543. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8120543

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