An internationally important painting of Thomas More and his family is undergoing public research at Nostell, a Palladian mansion near Wakefield in West Yorkshire. The open heritage science project, which began on Thursday, allows visitors to observe cutting-edge research typically conducted in private labs.
This initiative marks a UK first, deploying techniques previously used during the public restoration of Rembrandt’s 'The Night Watch' at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The National Trust stated that visitors will be able to witness this research firsthand.
The painting, considered the most faithful and same-size copy of a Holbein original destroyed in an 18th-century fire, depicts three generations of the More family. Researchers from the Fitzwilliam Museum’s Hamilton Kerr Institute are conducting the on-site work, which is expected to last eight days.
The project will include the first public use of macro X-ray fluorescence scanning in the UK. Researchers aim to uncover any hidden under-drawing and to discover and date later additions to the painting.