The two paintings were placed in funerary chapels in Theban Necropolis near the River Nile. They date to the Ramesside Period, approximately 1,400 and 1,200 BCE, respectively. 

The technology allowed researchers to undertake the experiments on-site, being able to analyse the paint composition and layering and identify alterations made to the artworks without having to remove them from their location.

The results of the experiments revealed that the headdress, necklace, and sceptre in the image of Ramesses II were substantially reworked.

In addition, in a scene of adoration depicted in Menna’s tomb, the position and colour of an arm were modified. Moreover, the pigments used to represent skin colour differ from those first applied, resulting in subtle changes whose purpose still remains uncertain.

Portrait of Ramses II in Nakhtamun...