Donato Acciaiuoli, Charlemagne’s Life

Differences between fols. 2r and 6r

Artists' Materials

The visual differences between the cherubs (putti) painted on both pages, such as the colour of their robes and of the clouds under their feet, correspond to a different choice of materials. The clouds are painted with shell gold on fol. 2r, while red lead is used on fol. 6r. In both cases, they are highlighted with lead-tin yellow. The cherubs’ blue robes contain ultramarine on fol. 2r, while azurite shaded with a red dye is present on fol. 6r.