Ancient Roman nano-technology: Insight into the manufacture of mosaic tesserae opacified by calcium antimonate

Drünert, Ferdinand; Palamara, Eleni; Zacharias, N.; Wondraczek, Lothar; Möncke, Doris

doi:10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2018.06.031

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…All the DSC present trends similar to those reported in Figure 1. It should be noted that our differential thermal analysis did not identify any crystallisation event, typically exothermic, in contrast to previous reports of experimental replica of natron glass opacified by Ca 2 Sb 2 O 7 at temperature ranges from 100 to 1100 • C [36]. Figure 1.…”

Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventscontrasting

confidence: 81%

“…Non-isothermal differential scanning calorimetry reveals different thermal events that appear as one, two or three endothermic peaks in the corresponding DSC curves (Figure 1, Figures S1-S10). All samples show a glass transition temperature (Tg) and the corresponding peak [41] between 520 and 553 • C that seems to correspond to a peak at 540 • C observed in some recently conducted glass model experiments [36]. Three samples (Noheda 76, 86, 93) display only this single endothermic peak, while six samples (Noheda 71, 77, 80, 92, 99 and 106) have an additional peak between 589 and 620 • C. This peak also represents a glass transition temperature, as already observed in Roman natron glasses opacified with calcium antimonate (see for comparison Figure 8 in [36]).…”

Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventsmentioning

confidence: 57%

“…All samples show a glass transition temperature (Tg) and the corresponding peak [41] between 520 and 553 • C that seems to correspond to a peak at 540 • C observed in some recently conducted glass model experiments [36]. Three samples (Noheda 76, 86, 93) display only this single endothermic peak, while six samples (Noheda 71, 77, 80, 92, 99 and 106) have an additional peak between 589 and 620 • C. This peak also represents a glass transition temperature, as already observed in Roman natron glasses opacified with calcium antimonate (see for comparison Figure 8 in [36]). These two Tg peaks correspond to two different glassy phases, one richer in silica, and the other one richer in network modifier cations.…”

Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventsmentioning

confidence: 57%

“…In case of tesserae, lead oxide may have instead benefited the optical properties, homogeneity and brilliance of the glass. The formation of calcium antimonate in natron glasses has been experimentally reproduced in the laboratory and it was found that the crystals were formed by in situ crystallisation after antimony oxide (as Sb 2 O 4 or Sb 2 O 5 ) was added to a base glass [14,36]. A long thermal cycle of 20 h at approximately 1100 • C has produced a result very close to the texture of Roman glasses.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

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Preliminary Thermal Investigations of Calcium Antimonate Opacified White Glass Tesserae

et al. 2020

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Calcium antimonate (in the hexagonal or cubic form) dispersed in the glass matrix is an artificially synthesized phase commonly documented as opacifier for white glasses during the Roman period. Glasses of this type occasionally contain variable amounts of lead oxide. There is no consensus about the origin and role of the lead component in white glasses, whether it was functional to modify the workability of the glass and/or to help the precipitation of the particles, or whether it was an unintentional pollutant introduced with the raw materials. A group of lead and lead-free white mosaic tesserae from the fourth-century CE villa of Noheda in Spain were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and high temperature X-ray diffraction (HTXRD) to evaluate the impact of variable amounts of lead oxide in the precipitation of calcium antimonate on the viscosity of the glass. The analyzed glasses show thermal events that have been related to the composition of the glass via multicomponent linear regression model. CaSb2O6 and Ca2Sb2O7 formed in the glass during the cooling phase and the glass was not reheated. Lead oxide influences the thermal behavior of the glass, lowering the onset temperatures of all the events, implying a more cost-effective production process. We propose that lead was added intentionally or that lead-bearing raw materials were selected specifically by the ancient glass artisans.

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Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventscontrasting

confidence: 81%

Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventsmentioning

confidence: 57%

Section: Identification Of Thermal Eventsmentioning

confidence: 57%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

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Preliminary Thermal Investigations of Calcium Antimonate Opacified White Glass Tesserae

et al. 2020

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“…The remarkable Cosmological polychrome mosaic found in Mérida (W Spain), also dated in the 2nd century AD, stands out for the combination of stone (limestone, quartzite, and marble), precious material (lapis lazuli and gold), and glass tesserae [9]. Existing archaeometric characterization of tesserae from mosaics often concentrates on glass tesserae [10][11][12][13][14] and only rarely on stone tesserae, mainly marble [15] and limestone [16,17]. Comprehensive studies that have included different types of tesserae are rather scarce [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Colors of the Circus Mosaic from Barcino (Roman Barcelona): Characterization, Provenance, and Technology Issues

et al. 2021

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Archaeometric studies on mosaics often concentrate only on glass tesserae, while comprehensive studies including both stone and glass tesserae are scarce; however, both types of tesserae can sometimes bring relevant data to elaborate archaeological knowledge on a studied mosaic. In this paper, a representative set of tesserae from a large polychrome Roman mosaic retrieved in Barcelona (NE Spain) is investigated using various methods. Most of the techniques were directly applied on samples prepared as petrographic thin sections (including polarized-light, cathodoluminescence and electron microscopies, and synchrotron through-the-substrate μX-ray diffraction). The results indicate that, from the ten sampled stone tesserae, there are (i) seven limestones, one of them identified as Alveolina limestone (early Eocene) from the southern Pyrenees (ii) two sandstones from Barcelona’s Montjuïc hill (Miocene) and, (iii) a Carrara white marble from the Apuan Alps (Italy). The profuse presence of tesserae of both local and imported materials with well-known uses in architecture, epigraphy, and sculpture could imply that tesserae were a by-product of their main use. Two different production technologies were identified for the three sampled glass tesserae. The concurrent use of antimony- and tin-based opacifiers is in agreement with the accepted archaeological chronology of the mosaic (4th century AD).

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Kinetic analysis of the pyrolysis of wood/inorganic composites under non-isothermal conditions

et al. 2020

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Ancient Roman nano-technology: Insight into the manufacture of mosaic tesserae opacified by calcium antimonate

Cited by 9 publications

References 20 publications

Preliminary Thermal Investigations of Calcium Antimonate Opacified White Glass Tesserae

Preliminary Thermal Investigations of Calcium Antimonate Opacified White Glass Tesserae

The Colors of the Circus Mosaic from Barcino (Roman Barcelona): Characterization, Provenance, and Technology Issues

Kinetic analysis of the pyrolysis of wood/inorganic composites under non-isothermal conditions

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