Characterization of Brown-Black and Blue Pigments in Glazed Pottery Fragments from Castel Fiorentino (Foggia, Italy) by Raman Microscopy, X-Ray Powder Diffractometry and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy

Clark, Robin J. H.; Curri, M. Lucia; Henshaw, Geoffrey S.; Laganara, Caterina

doi:10.1002/(sici)1097-4555(199702)28:2/3<105::aid-jrs77>3.0.co;2-z

Cited by 50 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…This mineral was not known as a colouring agent in antiquity, but was used as a brown colourant during the Middle Ages, i.e. for church windows and for glazing of apulian ceramics (Clark et al 1997;Wedepohl 2003). The green part of the fragment contains cassiterite as opacifier.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical composition and colouring agents of Roman mosaic and millefiori glass, studied by electron microprobe analysis and Raman microspectroscopy

Gedzevičiūtė¹,

Welter

Schüssler

et al. 2009

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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About 100 fragments of Roman mosaic and millefiori glass were stylistically attributed to a Hellenistic type, a Ptolemaic and Romano-Egyptian period type and an early imperial period type. Twelve representative fragments were studied by electron microprobe analysis and Raman microspectroscopy. Eleven of them display a Napronounced recipe with low K, Mg and P contents, typical for the Roman period. Minor differences in composition are unsystematic, not reflecting the stylistic classification. Ionic colouring agents are Mn 3+ for violet, Cu 2+ for light blue, Co 2+ for deep blue and Fe 3+ for brown translucent colours. Calcium antimonates, lead antimonate and cuprite are the colourants responsible for white, yellow and red colours, respectively, and additionally serve as opacifiers. Mixing of ionic colouring agents and opacifying colourants led to a more differentiated palette of colours. Pb was used as yellow colouring agent, as a flux material and as a stabiliser for the colourant crystals. The remaining fragment consisting of a K-pronounced but still Na-bearing glass matrix was most likely produced during the Middle Ages or later.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemical composition and colouring agents of Roman mosaic and millefiori glass, studied by electron microprobe analysis and Raman microspectroscopy

Gedzevičiūtė¹,

Welter

Schüssler

et al. 2009

Archaeol Anthropol Sci

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“…These authors were not able to identify the colouring agent with conventional techniques (XRF, EPMA, SEM-EDS, etc.) until Raman spectroscopists demonstrated the wide use of lapis lazuli as a colouring agent, at least since the Ptolemaic Dynasty (Lagids:~300 to 30 BCE), either in pottery [4,5,69,70] or glass [4,[71][72][73][74]. Furthermore, both cobalt ions and lapis lazuli grains could be used simultaneously as colouring agents [5,[73][74][75], suggesting some conclusions should be reconsidered since the dispersion of lapis lazuli grains is difficult to detect by elemental analysis-especially when the mineral is not specifically searched for by scholars.…”

Section: Historical Background and Famous Use Of Cobalt As Colouring Agentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The later source of cobalt was also used in Mesopotamia. It is important to note that as early as the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, lapis lazuli was also used as a colouring agent of the glaze and enamels on glass [69][70][71][72][73][74][75]87,88], a fact still today ignored by most scholars. Taking into account that cobalt appears to have been used to colour glass continuously since the late Egyptian/Mesopotamian Antiquity [89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97], we should ask why the coloration of glazes with cobalt almost disappeared after the Ptolemaic period up to the Tang Dynasty (8th-Century) in China (at the kilns of Baihe and Huangye, close to Gongyi, in Gongxian, Henan province [98][99][100][101][102][103][104]) and the Umayyad Caliphate (661-750 CE) in Mesopotamia [19].…”

Section: Historical Information On the Use And Trade Of Cobaltmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cobalt and Associated Impurities in Blue (and Green) Glass, Glaze and Enamel: Relationships between Raw Materials, Processing, Composition, Phases and International Trade

2021

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Minerals able to colour in blue (and green in combination with yellow pigments) are limited in number and geologically. After presenting a short history of the use of cobalt as a colouring agent of glass, glaze and enamel in the Western/Mediterranean, Islamic and Asian worlds since Antiquity, we will present the different forms (dissolved ions, natural and synthetic crystalline phases/pigments) of cobalt and associated elements regarding primary (transition metals) and secondary geological deposits (transition metals and/or arsenic, bismuth, silver). Attempts to identify the origin of cobalt have been made by many authors considering the associated elements but without considering the important modifications due to different processing of the raw materials (extraction/purification/formulation). We review the information available in the ancient reports and present literature on the use of cobalt, its extraction and production from the ores, the different geological sources and their relationship with associated elements (transition metals, bismuth, arsenic, and silver) and with technological/aesthetic requirements. (Partial) substitution of cobalt with lapis lazuli is also addressed. The relative application of non-invasive mobile Raman and pXRF analytical instruments, to detect mineral phases and elements associated with/replacing cobalt is addressed, with emphasis on Mamluk, Ottoman, Chinese, Vietnamese and Japanese productions. The efficiency of Ni-Zn-As diagram proposed by Gratuze et al. as a classification tool is confirmed but additionally, CoO-Fe2O3−MnO and CoO-NiO-Cr2O3 diagrams are also found as very efficient tools in this research. The relationship between the compositional data obtained from the artefacts and historical questions on the origin and date of their production are discussed in order to obtain a global historical view. The need of a better knowledge of (ancient) deposits of cobalt ores and the evolution of cobalt ore processing with time and place is obvious.

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“…Notwithstanding its enormous price related to its rarity and colour, natural ultramarine was extensively used throughout history, as a decorative stone [1,20], as a colourant for ceramics [21][22][23], and in paintings and manuscripts both in Asia and Europe starting from the 6th century [24], as well as in pre-Columbian cultures [25]. In European contexts, this extremely valuable material was mined in presentday Afghanistan and traded via Venice [1,20], and it was reserved to specific iconographic elements of the composition, such as Christ and the Virgin's blue cloaks [1,20,26,27].…”

Section: Ultramarine Blue (Na 8 [Al 6 Si 6 O 24 ]S N )mentioning

confidence: 99%

On the stability of mediaeval inorganic pigments: a literature review of the effect of climate, material selection, biological activity, analysis and conservation treatments

2017

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This review is to be considered part of the development of the MEMORI dosimeter, to evaluate the impact of climate (relative humidity, temperature, illumination, etc., including volatile organic compounds) on moveable objects. In the framework of the MEMORI project, Ghent University was given the task to assess pigment degradation upon acetic acid exposure, and to collect information on pigments' stability. Moreover, to obtain a wider knowledge on the stability of common pigments, the effect of a variety of parameters was reviewed from literature. Discolouration and degradation of pigments significantly alter the legibility of polychrome works of art, so that the development of monitoring methods to ensure the preservation of cultural heritage objects is of primary importance.

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Characterization of Brown-Black and Blue Pigments in Glazed Pottery Fragments from Castel Fiorentino (Foggia, Italy) by Raman Microscopy, X-Ray Powder Diffractometry and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy

Cited by 50 publications

References 0 publications

Chemical composition and colouring agents of Roman mosaic and millefiori glass, studied by electron microprobe analysis and Raman microspectroscopy

Chemical composition and colouring agents of Roman mosaic and millefiori glass, studied by electron microprobe analysis and Raman microspectroscopy

Cobalt and Associated Impurities in Blue (and Green) Glass, Glaze and Enamel: Relationships between Raw Materials, Processing, Composition, Phases and International Trade

On the stability of mediaeval inorganic pigments: a literature review of the effect of climate, material selection, biological activity, analysis and conservation treatments

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