120 Uzielli
movements, in spite of the cleats, severely damaged the ground and paint
layer in areas that correspond to the connections, whereas paint is fairly well
preserved in other areas of the same front frame (Fig. 12) (Del Serra 1990).
There were several other types of connections—usually done
with nails—between the various parts ofwood supports. Examples can
be seen in the added parts or lateral sealing of boards in thirteenth- or
fourteenth-century crucifixes or altarpieces (Fig. 13) (Bracco, Ciappi,
andRamat 1992).Arrangement of boards
Usually a panel was made of boards placed parallel to one another.^24 The
longitudinal axis of the boards coincided with grain direction and was ori-
ented along the greater dimension of the painting. Less frequently, panels
were formed by boards connected with their grain direction perpendicular
to each other, end joined, or irregularly placed. There were various cases
and reasons for this configuration. In painted crosses, the transverse arm
was typically made of horizontal boards.^25 Ahalf-lap joint (incastro a mezzo
legno) w as then made, and the two adjacent faces were glued together with
the grains positioned at right angles. Dovetail joints and other joining
methods were also used (Bracco, Ciappi, and Ramat 1992).
Evidence shows that in some cases modifications or additions of
boards (including perpendicular additions) to the wooden support were
made before the ground layer was applied, possibly to satisfy the require-
ments of the artist, who might have changed his mind or have been
required to paint on a support that had already been prepared indepen-
dently from personal specifications (for example, see Giotto’s Crocifisso di
Santa Maria Novella,Florence [Bracco, Ciappi, and Ramat 1992]).
Modifications also occurred as a consequence of later interven-
tions on paintings, as a result of the need to replace deteriorated parts or
to modify the shape, size, or proportions of a panel, as with Raphael’sFigure 11
Drawing of X-shaped wooden cleat used to
connect adjacent boards, mainly in later
restoration works.
Figure 12
X-shaped wooden cleat used to connect two
boards of the engaged frame after manufac-
ture ofthe panel. Duccio, Maestà.
Figure 10
Drawing of wooden splines used for position-
ing boards during the setting of the glue.