Archaeometallurgical Analyses on Two Renaissance Swords from the “Luigi Marzoli” Museum in Brescia: Manufacturing and Provenance

Abstract

Two Venetian types of swords coming from the “Luigi Marzoli” Arms Museum in Brescia were characterized in this study, to understand their manufacturing process and to gather information about their provenance. Both the blades and the hilts components are analyzed using a multi-methodological approach, to describe possible differences in the metallurgical features that involved classical metallographic and spectroscopic techniques. Microstructural results indicate a complex process for the manufacturing of the blades, by hot-forging, confirmed by a sequence of different microstructures even on the same sample. Furthermore, an interesting and unusual manufacturing technique is used on one of the pommels, which consists of two hemispheres connected by copper joints. Hypothesis about the ironmaking and the provenience of raw materials are obtained by the features and composition of the inclusions. It is suggested that there is the use of both a direct and an indirect process on the swords. It is likely that the minerals used to obtain iron and copper of the swords come from the mines of the Brescia and Bergamo territories. All the hypotheses are consistent with the historical documents of the time that also give information on the diffusion of such swords in the Brescia area.

Metals in Heritage Science

“…This book presents a collection of manuscripts from cutting-edge academic researchers and consists of the following: (i) one review paper regarding fractographic, metallographic and chemical analyses as key tools for improving the interpretation of damage in historical copper and silver alloys [1]; (ii) six experimental research papers focused on the chemical and metallurgical characterization of ancient artifacts such as ceramic casting molds, Nuragic bronze objects, Renaissance swords, Japanese metallic threads and an emblematic copper-based alloy monument [2][3][4][5][6][7]; (iii) two research articles on the use of oxygen depletion testing for quantitatively measuring the deterioration of historical metals and on the employment of different portable/transportable devices to assess the effects of the bronze disease phenomenon [8,9]; (iv) one experimental research paper that aims to determine the optimal application conditions of a new multifunctional coating containing Ag-doped TiO 2 nanoparticles, when used as a possible protective agent for sandstone [10].…”

“…In ref. [5], two swords tentatively dating around 1480 to 1490 CE and coming from the 'Luigi Marzoli' Arms Museum in Brescia (Italy) were investigated to gather some information about their manufacturing process and provenance. Both items can be classified as swords 'alla veneta' (or Venetian type) due to the presence of the following peculiar features, aimed at improving the grip and making the hilt more ergonomic: (i) branches on the two edges of the blades to support the index and middle fingers of the hand; (ii) a knuckle-guard that departs from the center of the quillon and reaches the pommel; (iii) single or double-edged blades with a lenticular section.…”

Archeometallurgical Study of a Renaissance Spearhead from Northern Italy

“…It is worth to note that the development of the indirect method starting from the Late Middle Age (thirteenth century) allowed to satisfy the increasing demand of high-quality iron and steel by the Brescian arms manufacturers and therefore was crucial for their expansion in the Renaissance period. [11] Although the forging technology of Renaissance swords and armors has been extensively investigated, [5,7,11] at present, the manufacturing process of Renaissance polearms has been scarcely studied. [1] To the best of authors' knowledge, only one archaeometallurgical research on a sixteenth century bill-type staff weapon from Italy has been published so far.…”

“…[14] It is important to stress that each described manufacturing stage can leave traces in the final object. As shown in the literature, [5,11,[20][21][22][23][24][25][26] one of the most effective reverse engineering strategies to extract technological information from ancient ferrous artifacts involves a synergic combination of metallographic and slag inclusions (SIs) analysis. Using this approach, the present research aims to offer new insights into both smelting and forging processes practiced by Brescian hafted weapons' specialists during the Renaissance period.…”