The provenance of raw materials for the manufacture of a knight stove from Petrov, Brno

Abstract

Archaeological research in the complex of the Brno chapter at Petrov yielded a series of greenglazed incised tiles from the ledge of a knight stove (angel the shield-bearer). The tiles were made in 1454-1457 by a royal workshop in Buda for King Ladislaus the Posthumous. The frequency of the finds of the remains of these stoves in Brno (different types from at least eleven locations) led to the exact determination of the provenance of the Petrov series, the main objective being to contribute to a deeper knowledge of the forms of transport of luxury tile stoves at the onset of the late Middle Ages. The tiles were subjected to micropetrographic analyses, which showed that local ceramic material rich in grog was used for their manufacture. In all probability, it came from the vicinity of Petrov. Analyses of the glazes by means of XRF and SEM-EDX revealed no traces of alkali components in the green glazing on the surface of the tiles, and confirmed that primarily PbO was used as a melting agent. The specific green tint was achieved by the addition of 2-3.5 % of CuO. The tiles were fired in chamber kilns at temperatures around 1000 °C.