Glass and glass production in the Near East during the Iron age : evidence from objects, texts and chemical analysis / Katharina Schmidt.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Schmidt, Katharina, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Glass--Iran.

Glass.

Glass manufacture--Iran.

Glass manufacture.

Iron age--Iran.

Iron age.

Antiquities.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (331 pages) : color illustrations

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Archaeopress Archaeology, [2019]

Summary:

This book examines the history of glass in Iron Age Mesopotamia and neighbouring regions (1000-539 BCE). This is the first monograph to cover this region and period comprehensively and in detail and thus fills a significant gap in glass research.

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright page

Dedication

Contents Page

List of Figures

List of Tables

Sources for Plates Illustrations

1. Foreword and Acknowledgements

1.1. Aims and objectives

1.2. Primary and secondary production and the principles of chaîne opératoire

1.3. Previous studies on glass in the ancient Near East

1.4. Geographical and chronological framework

1.4.1 Assyria and Babylonia

1.4.1.1 The Neo-Assyrian period

1.4.1.2 The Neo-Babylonian period

1.4.2 Levant

1.4.2.1 History and chronology of the Levant

1.4.2.2 'Phoenicia' and related terminological difficulties

1.5. The beginnings of glass production in ancient Mesopotamia

2. Glass and Glassy Materials: Definitions and Material Properties

2.1. Glass

2.1.1 Physical properties and chemical composition

2.1.2 Melting properties and workability

2.1.3 Weathering effects

2.2. Glassy and sintered materials: definitions and compositions

2.2.1 Faience

2.2.2 Glassy faience

2.2.3 Frit

2.2.4 Glazes

2.2.5 Summary

3. Archaeological Contexts: Sites with Iron Age Glass Finds

3.1. Assyria

3.1.1 Aššur

3.1.1.1 Ištar and Nabû temples

3.1.1.2 Graves

3.1.1.3 Other contexts

3.1.2 Khorsabad

3.1.3 Arslan Taş

3.1.4 Nimrud

3.1.4.1 Ninurta Temple

3.1.4.2 Northwest Palace

3.1.4.3 Burnt Palace

3.1.4.4 Fort Shalmaneser

3.1.4.5 Summary

3.1.5 Nineveh

3.1.6 Sultantepe

3.1.7 Til Barsip

3.1.8 Ziyaret Tepe

3.2. Babylonia

3.2.1 Babylon

3.2.1.1 Graves

3.2.1.2 Other contexts

3.2.1.3 Duleym

3.2.2 Eridu

3.2.3 Isin

3.2.4 Kiš

3.2.5 Nippur

3.2.6 Ur and Diqdiqqa

3.2.7 Uruk

3.3. Levant

3.3.1 Amman

3.3.2 Tel 'Aroer

3.3.3 'Atlit

3.3.4 Beth-Shean

3.3.5 Busayra

3.3.6 Tell Jemmeh

3.3.7 Megiddo

3.3.8 Pella

3.3.9 Samaria.

3.4. Related glass finds in other regions

3.4.1 Carthage

3.4.2 Fortetsa

3.4.3 Gordion

3.4.4 Hasanlu

3.4.4.1 Burnt Building II (BBII)

3.4.4.2 Burnt Building V (BBV)

3.4.4.3 Burnt Building IV-V (BBIV-V)

3.4.4.4 Summary

3.4.5 Idalion

3.4.6 Kameiros

3.4.7 Praeneste

3.4.8 Susa

4. The Glass Objects: Manufacturing Techniques, Typology, and Function

4.1. Mosaic (glass) objects

4.1.1 Definition of the term 'mosaic'

4.1.2 Manufacturing techniques

4.1.2.1 Bowls

4.1.2.2 Inlays

4.1.2.3 Tiles

4.1.3 Description and discussion of objects

4.1.3.1 Bowls

4.1.3.2 Inlays

4.1.3.3 Tiles

4.1.4 Discussion: date of mosaic (glass) objects

4.2. 'Cast-and-cut' glass

4.2.1 Manufacturing techniques

4.2.1.1 Principles of 'cast-and-cut' glass

4.2.1.2 Casting in open moulds

4.2.1.3 Casting in multi-part moulds and the lost-wax technique

4.2.1.4 Slumping and sagging

4.2.1.5 Significance of bubbles in the manufacturing process

4.2.1.6 Cold-working techniques

4.2.2 Description and discussion of objects

4.2.2.1 Palettes

4.2.2.2 Mace-heads

4.2.2.3 Jars and 'alabastra'

4.2.2.4 Hemispherical bowls

4.2.2.5 Shallow undecorated bowls, ribbed bowls and petalled bowls

4.2.2.6 Cut-and-inlaid vessels

4.2.2.7 Painted inlays

4.2.2.8 Rosette inlays

4.2.2.9 Small monochrome inlays

4.2.2.10 Large monochrome inlays

4.2.2.11 Attachments and inlays for composite statues

4.3. Core- and rod-formed glass

4.3.1 Previous studies on core- and rod-formed glass

4.3.2 Manufacturing process

4.3.2.1 Core-forming

4.3.2.2 Rod-forming

4.3.3 Core-formed vessels

4.3.3.1 Description of core-formed vessels

4.3.3.2 Discussion

4.3.4 Tubes

4.3.4.1 Manufacturing process

4.3.4.2 Description

4.3.4.3 Discussion

4.3.5 Head pendants.

4.4. Summary on different manufacturing techniques

4.5. Primary products: ingots, raw glass fragments and waste material

4.5.1 Description and discussion of the ingots

4.5.2 Description of the raw glass fragments

4.5.3 Description of the waste material

4.5.4 Summary

5. Discussion of the Archaeological Data

5.1. Remarks on the archaeological dataset

5.2. Distribution according to the different types of glass objects

5.3. Distribution according to sites and regions

5.3.1 Cast-and-cut glass

5.3.1.1 Vessels

5.3.1.2 Inlays

5.3.2 Core- and rod-formed objects

5.5.3 Summary

6. The Nineveh Glass Recipes

6.1. The understanding of the glass texts

6.1.1 Previous studies on glass texts

6.1.2 The distinction between 'manuscript' and 'text'

6.2. The library of Ashurbanipal and its 'manuscripts'

6.3. The 'texts': genre and function

6.4. Function of 'manuscript' and 'text'

6.5. Glass in cuneiform texts

6.6. The recipe for blue zagindurû-glass

6.6.1 Coherent transcription and translation

6.6.2 Introduction: the construction of the kiln and accompanying rituals

6.6.3 Production of the colourless primary glass zukû

6.6.4 Production of the blue primary glass tersītu

6.6.5 Production of the end product: blue zagindurû-glass

6.6.6 Summary

7. Archaeometrical Evidence

7.1. Major constituents of ancient glass

7.1.1 Silica

7.1.2 Flux

7.1.3 Plant ash glass

7.1.4 Natron glass

7.1.5 Stabiliser

7.1.6 Opacifiers

7.1.7 Decolourisers

7.2. Colourants and their sources

7.2.1 Iron

7.2.2 Cobalt

7.2.3 Copper

7.2.3.1 Copper and blue glass

7.2.3.2 Copper and red glass

7.2.3.3 The emergence of high-lead/high-copper red glass

7.2.4 Lead antimonate and calcium antimonate

7.2.5 Manganese

7.3. Summary and conclusion.

7.4. Re-evaluation of chemical data of Mesopotamian glass

7.4.1 Approach and methodology

7.4.2 Hasanlu

7.4.2.1 Basic glass compositions

7.4.2.2 Colouring agents

7.4.3 Trace elements

7.4.3.1 Conclusion

7.4.4 Nimrud

7.4.4.1 Basic compositions

7.4.4.2 Colourless glass groups

7.4.4.3 Colouring agents

7.4.4.4 Conclusion

7.4.5 Pella

7.4.6 Gordion

7.4.7 Late Bronze Age glass from Nippur, Nuzi, and Tell Brak

7.4.8 Conclusion

7.4.8.1 Mesopotamian Late Bronze Age and Iron Age glass compositions

7.4.8.2 Exchange networks in the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age

8. Conclusion

8.1. Techniques and production

8.1.1 The different manufacturing techniques

8.1.2 Glass workshops: identification of primary and secondary production

8.1.2.1 Primary production

8.1.2.2 Secondary production

8.2. The role of the palace and the Neo-Assyrian Empire in Iron Age Mesopotamian glass production

8.2.1 Transparent cast-and-cut glass commissioned by the palace?

8.2.2 The question of 'Phoenician' glassworkers in the context of cold-working techniques

8.2.3 The impact of the Neo-Assyrian Empire on glass production by the displacement of specialists

8.3. Functions and values of glass objects and the material glass

8.3.1 Different forms of values

8.3.2 Use and significance of Iron Age Mesopotamian glass objects

8.3.3 The material properties of glass and its value

8.4. Concluding remarks

Index of Technical Terms

Bibliography

Catalogue

Figure 2.1: Opaque (left), translucent (middle) and transparent glass (right) (left, middle: Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Vorderasiatisches Museum, photo: Olaf Teßmer

right: Courtesy of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago).

Figure 2.2: Left: Atomic structure of a solid. Right: Atomic structure of a glassy material.

Figure 2.3: Degree of viscosity and corresponding reference points

Figure 2.4: Layer of colourful iridescence and pitting. Due to corrosion, parts of the surface are flaked off and exhibit a layer of iridescence and severe pitting

Figure 2.5: Thin section of a blue faience bead. The outer surface is covered by a fully fused glass layer

Figure 2.6: Faience bowl exhibiting a blue glaze and light-brown core (Egypt, 18th dynasty)

Figure 2.7: Glazed pottery vessels in different states of preservation. The bottle in the middle exhibits crazing (Babylon, 900-500 BCE)

Table 2.1: The material descriptions, their core materials and the date of invention discussed in this chapter.

Figure 3.1: Map showing sites from which finds are included in this study.

Figure 3.2: Plan of the Ištar Temple of Tukulti Ninurta I (black structures) and the Nabû Temple (white structures).

Figure 3.3: Plan of the Northwest Palace. Findspots of glass are indicated by red boxes

Figure 3.4: Part of the plan of the Burnt Palace. Glass findspots are indicated by red boxes

Figure 3.5: Plan of Fort Shalmaneser. Glass findspots are indicated by red boxes

Figure 3.6: Glass objects and accompanying finds within and around coffin 109

Figure 3.7: Plan of phase Hasanlu IVB, showing columns and post-holes

Figure 4.1: Cutting of mosaic rods, carried out in cold state while it is still plastic

Figure 4.2: Detail of bowl As2, showing the inner and outer layer of mosaic pieces

Figure 4.3: The principle of making mosaic glass inlays: mosaic glass segments of different sizes and shapes are fused together

Figure 4.4: Mosaic inlays of the second type: a mosaic glass inlay is fused onto a monochrome glass layer

Figure 4.5: Alabaster vessel from Hasanlu with inlays made of mosaic glass, carnelian and Egyptian blue. The mosaic inlays are in secondary use.

Figure 4.6: Mosaic glass beaker from Marlik, ht. 17 cm.

Notes:

Includes index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (ebrary, viewed September 23, 2019).

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

1-78969-155-9

OCLC:

1111949022