Early medieval elite jewellery from Great Moravia and Bohemia. Manufacturing processes, construction, materials and condition

0575821 - ARÚ 2024 RIV DE eng B - Monografie kniha jako celek
Ottenwelter, Estelle - Barčáková, Ludmila - Mařík, Jan
Early medieval elite jewellery from Great Moravia and Bohemia. Manufacturing processes, construction, materials and condition.
Mainz: Verlag des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, 2022. 479 s. Monographien des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, 164. ISBN 978-3-88467-361-4; ISBN 978-80-7581-047-2. ISSN 0171-1474
Institucionální podpora: RVO:67985912
Klíčová slova: elite jewellery * goldsmithing * Early Middle Ages * Great Moravia * Bohemia
Obor OECD: Archaeology

Integrating a multidisciplinary methodology, the technological approach developed in this publication provides new insights into Great Moravian and Bohemian elite jewellery dated from the 9th and 10th centuries AD. Based on an investigation of the main types of jewels (gombiky, earrings, metallic elements of necklaces including kaptorgy, beads, and chains), it sheds light on the complex construction of these jewels, on the different manufacturing processes, and on the decoration techniques involved in their fabrication. Detailed material characterizations highlight the elemental chemical composition and purity of the alloys used by the jewellers in both regions and over time. The comparisons of the size, the total number of components, the estimated manufacturing time, and the weight of precious metal needed to produce each type of jewel shed light on the level of complexity involved in their manufacture and highlight the exceptional pieces. The observations and comparisons of tool marks, defects, and quality of realization evidence the presence of very fine pieces manufactured by highly skilled goldsmiths using sophisticated tools alongside coarse productions manufactured by unexperienced craftsmen with low skill and more rudimentary tools. In addition, they allow us to identify pieces likely produced in the same workshop and probable imports.
Trvalý link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0345534