Microanalytical Determinations to Distinguish Maiolica and Mezza Majolica Ceramics from Faenza (Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy)
Abstract
:1. Introduction
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- “majolica” or engobed terracotta, where the color of the ceramic body is hidden by a white or colored glass that waterproofs it on one side and highlights the painted decorations on the other side [20];
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2. Sampling and Analytical Methods
2.1. Samples and Sampling Site Description
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2.2. Analytical Techniques
3. Results and Discussion
3.1. Macroscopic Observation of the Collected Ceramic Samples
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- Tableware for domestic use consisting of containers (Figure 2c,f). These samples were glazed engobed terracotta. The body was colored, and it seemed more porous than those of the other samples. The coating was a white engobed covered with a yellowish lead glaze.
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- Terracotta tableware for consuming food on a table, such as plates (Figure 2a,b,d,e). The bodies were porous, sometimes very crumbly, light yellow in color, and rarely pink in color. The coating was sometimes a white enamel or of bluish tones, or with a white engobed and with a glazed layer. In both cases, it completely covered the body. There were two different types of enamel: white (sometimes bluish) of considerable thickness (sometimes up to 2 mm) with a thin mesh; whitish of considerably less thickness than the other type with a much finer mesh. The first type was characterized by the engobed terracotta of the seventeenth century, and probably later production (Figure 2a–c). The second type of coating was influenced by an older production method (Figure 2e); the coating was probably not a unique layer, but it was a painted enamel and subsequently covered by a glazed layer, a technique probably used in the last 1300 years [33].
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- the color surface was generally white, milky, or blue;
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- the surface appeared brilliant;
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- the coating completely and homogeneously covered both the front and the back sections, except the foot;
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- if there were decorations, they were always painted in blue, yellow, orange, green, or manganese violet.
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- Coating thickness: This was thicker in the engobed terracotta samples;
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- Coating color: The color of the engobed terracotta samples appeared milky white when the thickness of the enamel was thicker (Figure 3a) and pink where the thicknesses were thinner (Figure 3b). In the glazed engobed terracotta samples, the color was yellowish-ivory and none had pink tones (Figure 3c);
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- Coating luster: This was more visible in the glazed engobed terracotta;
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- Touch sensitivity on the painted ornaments: No sensitivity was detected in the engobed terracotta samples, except for the orange color. The opposite was true for the glazed engobed terracotta samples, in which the color had touch sensitivity.
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- Even alterations and degradation due to wear and/or laying in the subsoil could be used as indicators to identify the materials, for example:
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3.2. Microscopic Observation of the Selected Ceramic Samples
3.2.1. Engobed Terracottas
3.2.2. Glazed Engobed Terracottas
3.3. SEM-EDS Analyses of Selected Samples
3.3.1. Engobed Terracotta Samples
3.3.2. Glazed Engobed Terracotta Samples
3.4. Colorimetric Analyses
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- Fe-enriched non-calcareous clay is characterized by a porous structure with a sandy appearance with regular inclusions and vacuoles. It is characterized by a reddish-brown color.
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- with a double coating consisting of an engobed (earthy, covering) and a colorless showcase (vitreous, transparent); the decoration was between the two coatings (samples CM1i, CM2i, CM3i represented the mezza-majolica finds);
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- with a double coating consisting of an enamel (vitreous, covering); the painted ornamentation was between the two coatings (as for the majolica sample CM1s);
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- with a single coating consisting of an enamel (vitreous, covering) on which the painted decoration was carried out (as for the majolica sample CM2s).
4. Conclusions
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- Fe-enriched carbonate clay, characterized by a more or less fine structure, free of inclusions and vacuoles, with a color ranging from light pink to more intense shades, but never reaching the deep red color;
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- Fe-enriched non-carbonate clay, characterized by a porous structure of sandy appearance with regular inclusions and vacuoles. It is characterized by a reddish-brown color.
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- one with a double coating consisting of an engobe (earthy, covering) and a colorless glaze (vitreous, transparent);
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- one with a double coating consisting of a glaze (vitreous, opaque); the painted ornament was between the two coatings;
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- another with a single coating consisting of an enamel (vitreous, opaque), on which the painted ornament was executed.
Author Contributions
Funding
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Sample Name | Figure Reference | Classification | Daily Use | Engobed Color | Coating | Porous Body |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
CM1i | Figure 2a | engobed terracotta | Plats | White | white enamel | X |
CM2i | Figure 2b | engobed terracotta | Plats | White | white enamel | X |
CM3i | Figure 2c | engobed terracotta | containers (jug or pit) | White | yellow lead glaze | Less intense |
CM1s | Figure 2d | glazed engobed terracotta | Plats | White | white enamel | X |
CM2s | Figure 2e | glazed engobed terracotta | Plats | White | white enamel | X |
CM3s | Figure 2f | glazed engobed terracotta | containers (jug or pit) | White | yellow lead glaze | Less intense |
Coating Thickness | Coating Color | Coating Luster | Touch Sensitivity on the Painted Ornaments | Quibble | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Engobed terracotta | Thick | Milky white with thick enamel and pink with thin enamel | Less visible | Never, except for orange color. | Thin or thick depending on the thickness of the glaze. Always with round mesh |
Glazed engobed terracotta | Thin | Yellowish-ivory | More visible | Always | Mesh with geometrical trend and always blackened |
SiO2 | PbO | TiO2 | Al2O3 | Fe2O3 | MgO | CaO | Na2O | K2O | SO3 | SnO2 | TOT | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
CM1s | G | 61.11 | 17.10 | 6.20 | 2.95 | 1.21 | 0.23 | 2.10 | 1.87 | 7.23 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 |
Ena | 66.24 | 14.11 | 0.00 | 0.17 | 0.53 | 0.17 | 3.66 | 1.84 | 6.61 | 0.00 | 6.67 | 100 | |
CB | 55.66 | 0.00 | 0.65 | 14.79 | 6.03 | 3.67 | 14.86 | 1.16 | 3.18 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CM2s | G | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0 |
Ena | 56.39 | 25.31 | 0.00 | 4.15 | 0.38 | 0.28 | 1.53 | 1.42 | 4.51 | 0.00 | 6.03 | 100 | |
CB | 51.89 | 0.00 | 0.76 | 14.20 | 6.60 | 4.47 | 18.56 | 1.41 | 2.11 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CM3s | G | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0 |
Ena | 55.57 | 24.14 | 0.00 | 4.35 | 0.61 | 0.21 | 1.74 | 1.39 | 5.43 | 0.00 | 6.56 | 100 | |
CB | 51.50 | 0.00 | 0.73 | 14.65 | 7.26 | 3.90 | 17.71 | 1.37 | 2.88 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CM1i | G | 59.69 | 22.85 | 0.00 | 4.64 | 0.74 | 0.42 | 3.97 | 1.86 | 5.83 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 |
Eng | 53.83 | 0.00 | 0.68 | 16.53 | 1.80 | 5.86 | 11.04 | 2.00 | 5.93 | 2.33 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CB | 51.36 | 0.00 | 0.59 | 15.27 | 6.43 | 4.38 | 16.58 | 1.65 | 3.74 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CM2i | G | 58.30 | 27.70 | 0.00 | 3.97 | 0.35 | 0.45 | 2.73 | 1.57 | 4.93 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 |
Eng | 49.90 | 0.00 | 0.69 | 16.27 | 0.99 | 5.12 | 15.10 | 1.04 | 6.49 | 4.40 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CB | 53.13 | 0.00 | 0.63 | 14.23 | 5.19 | 4.11 | 17.85 | 1.15 | 3.71 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CM3i | G | 60.26 | 24.95 | 0.00 | 3.36 | 0.63 | 0.68 | 3.74 | 2.27 | 4.11 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 |
Eng | 56.00 | 0.00 | 0.70 | 15.27 | 1.60 | 5.51 | 11.19 | 2.94 | 5.03 | 1.76 | 0.00 | 100 | |
CB | 56.75 | 0.00 | 0.72 | 15.37 | 3.82 | 4.91 | 12.64 | 2.91 | 2.88 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100 |
L* | a* | b* | |
---|---|---|---|
CM 1s | 66.61 | 3.95 | 10.01 |
CM 2s | 78.63 | 1.04 | 6.47 |
CM 3s | 78.35 | 1.85 | 8.36 |
CM 1i | 76.38 | 2.10 | 14.69 |
CM 2i | 77.17 | 0.80 | 13.51 |
CM 3i | 75.39 | 1.89 | 12.31 |
Engobed Terracotta (Majolica) | Glazed Engobed Terracotta (Mezza-Majolica) | |
---|---|---|
1 | Molding of the clay in a plastic state | Molding of clay in a plastic state |
2 | Engobed application on the raw artifact | |
3 | First firing | First firing |
4 | Enable application and decoration | Decoration |
5 | Glazed application | |
6 | Second firing | Second firing |
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Marrocchino, E.; Paletta, M.G.; Telloli, C. Microanalytical Determinations to Distinguish Maiolica and Mezza Majolica Ceramics from Faenza (Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy). Heritage 2022, 5, 3515-3529. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5040182
Marrocchino E, Paletta MG, Telloli C. Microanalytical Determinations to Distinguish Maiolica and Mezza Majolica Ceramics from Faenza (Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy). Heritage. 2022; 5(4):3515-3529. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5040182
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarrocchino, Elena, Maria Grazia Paletta, and Chiara Telloli. 2022. "Microanalytical Determinations to Distinguish Maiolica and Mezza Majolica Ceramics from Faenza (Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy)" Heritage 5, no. 4: 3515-3529. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5040182
APA StyleMarrocchino, E., Paletta, M. G., & Telloli, C. (2022). Microanalytical Determinations to Distinguish Maiolica and Mezza Majolica Ceramics from Faenza (Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy). Heritage, 5(4), 3515-3529. https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage5040182