An Overview of Germanic Grisailles through the Stained-Glass Collection at Pena Palace

Abstract

The lack of studies reporting the characterisation of Germanic grisaille is evident, despite the recent interest of researchers in this glass painting material. This work consists of the first assessment of Germanic grisaille’ chemical composition on a wide chronology (14th–19th centuries), that was only possible through the unique stained-glass collection of King Ferdinand II of Portugal. From the considerable amount of panels produced in Germanic territory and assembled by Ferdinand, twenty-two panels were characterised, and some trends of glass support typical composition and grisaille recipes were verified through this case study. A copper-based grisaille appears to have been the preference up to the 18th century. The 19th century shows higher diversity in composition, with new compounds (such as Co, Cr, Mn) appearing as colourising materials. However, with a limited number of analyses, and dispersed throughout time and different geographic locations, the results of this study are unprecedented, by being able to present the first overview on grisaille composition in Germanic stained glasses.

Laser-based techniques for the non-invasive characterisation of grisaille paints on stained-glass windows

“…%). These compositions also agree with those found in the literature for grisailles from the same chronology and provenance [47,74,75]. It is known that Flanders (a region that in the sixteenth century encompassed all the regions of Low Countries, Belgium, and Luxembourg) [48] at that time was exporting not only their glass and stained glass but also their technical expertise throughout Europe, including to Portugal.…”

“…However, the preference for copper in these samples is not related to their chronology but to their provenance, as both came from the Church of Grodziec (Poland). Previous studies verified that in countries from central and south-central Europe (Germany, Poland, Italy, and Czech Republic), the use of copper as the main colourant of the grisaille was preferred [3,10,55,72]. The sample from the 13-14th centuries (JC012), of French origin, also has a similar composition to that of grisailles from the same provenance and chronologies from the church of Sainte Chapelle in Paris (France), studied by Verità et al [73].…”

The Influence of Raw Materials on the Stability of Grisaille Paint Layers

“…From the analytical results on historical grisaille compositions described in the literature, it was possible to confirm the use of the same raw materials described in the historical recipes. The grisailles generally present a high quantity of lead in their composition [9][10][11], which confirms the use of high lead-based glass in their production. Veritá et al [12] analyzed the stained-glass windows of the Sainte Chapelle in Paris (France) and detected that the vitrified matrix had high lead contents, low silica, and small traces of alumina, lime, and potash [12].…”