Up to eight layers of gesso, a kind of plaster made of rabbit skin glue and powdered gypsum, would be put on the structure. The layers of gesso would be scraped down and polished until the surface was smooth. The design for the painting, as well as the major drapery folds, would first be sketched on a piece of paper, called a cartoon. The outlines of the image would be transferred to the panel with a metal point. Then, up to six coats of a red clayish substance, called bole, mixed with egg whites are applied to the painting, as a glue for the gold leaf.
Gold leaf is thin, and are easy to rip.
It is made by pounding gold coins, along with bits of metal, until they form very thin sheets of gold. The gold was applied, then burnished. Designs were inscribed on it. All the areas where flesh would be were painted in green and white. Flesh-colored paint was painted over it.