1. 1st LANTERNA
ION BEAMTECHNIQUES IN
INVESTIGATION OF ROMAN IMPERIAL
VESSEL ANDWINDOW GLASS FROM MT.
KOSMAJ (SERBIA)
National Museum Belgrade, Serbia
Jožef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia
3rd November, Novi Sad

2. Ion BeamTechniques PIXE and PIGE
• Accelerated charged particles (protons) are hitting the target and
producing the characteristicX or γ -rays which are recorded with detector
https://www.hzdr.de/db/Pic?pOid=29855

3. Experiments: Tandetron accelerator at the Jožef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana

5. Technology of Glass Making
Silica (sand)
Flux (plant ash, natron, wood ash, lime)
Decolourant (minerals)
Brilliance (metals or minerals)
Colorant (scraped metals or minerals)
Glass
Si
Na
K
Mg
Al
Fe
Ti
Sr
Zr
Sb
Mn
Pb
Co
Cu
Mn...

6. Short history of glass making
• Started at 3rd millennium BC in Mesopotamia,
spred to Egypt, Mycenae, Persia compositionally
soda-ash glass, Mg and K rich glass
(chalcophythic plants)
• About 6th cent. BC to 8th cent AD glass becomes
characteristic by lower Mg and K levels, richer in
antimony or manganese as decolourants.This
kind of glass prevailed during the Roman period
(natron-lime-silica glass)
• Early Islamic and in Europe 8th cent AD. glass
returns to high Mg, K levels (wood ash in western
Europe)

7. The crude material was obtained in the region of Levant where remains of
large glass furnaces have been found dated to the Byzantine period but
assuming that it was the same method used in earlier times. The chunk glass
was then crushed in small paces and sent to the secondary workshops for the
production of glass objects
Centralized Primary Production

8. This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons..
Map of the Roman Empire in 125 AD. during the reign of emperor Hadrian

9. One of the mining settlements in the province Moesia Superior was at
today Mt. Kosmaj village Stojnik. There are several necropolis found
dated to the period from 1st to the 3rd cent. AD, namely small Kopašnica Sase tipe
of burial. The cremated remains/a heap of ash with the bones of deceased and
grave goods were placed into the interior of closed grave/buried pits with the
sides and the bottom fired

10. All glass samples from Mt. Kosmaj are natron tipe
MgO and K2O Concentrations in the Samples

11. 825231918132263031332422272128292013111617121591476310254
41,20
60,80
80,40
100,00
slicnost
K1 K2
K3
%
uzorci
Cluster Analyses
Three different compositional groups

12. K1;
N=13
прозорско
K2
N=13
посуде
K3
N=4
зелено
стакло
Средња
вредност
st. dev. Средња
вредност
±ст. дев. Средња
вредност
±ст. дев.
Na2O % 18.37 ± 2.77 15.11 ± 2.97 15 ± 0.61
MgO % 0.67 ± 0.24 0.54 ± 0.14 0.48 ± 0.15
Al2O3 % 1.97 ± 0.18 2.19 ± 0.28 2.57 ± 0.09
SiO2% 68.95 ± 2.30 72.14 ± 2.80 71.88 ± 0.56
SO3% 0.40 ± 0.06 1.06 ± 0.37 0.49 ± 0.02
Cl% 1.16 ± 0.13 0.97 ± 0.08 0.95 ± 0.06
K2O% 0.45 ± 0.03 0.59 ± 0.14 0.86 ± 0.4
CaO% 6.32 ± 0.45 6.30 ± 0.29 7.17 ± 0.25
TiO2% 0.09 ± 0.01 0.08 ± 0.01 0.05 ± 0.003
MnO% 0.92 ± 0.07 0.29 ± 0.17 0.199 ± 0.08
Fe2O3% 0.57 ± 0.04 0.42 ± 0.07 0.318 ± 0.07
Sb2O3% 0.02 ± 0.08 0.19 ± 0.08 0.006 ± 0.01

13. DECOLOURANTS
• K3 pale green Mn about 0,2% as natural impurity
•K2 different colours and colourless MnO about 0,3% and
SbO2 about 0,2 %
•K1 window glass MnO of about 1%
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
0.4
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
Sb2O3%
MnO%
K1
K2
K3

14. Conclusions on 1st to 4th cent. AD
glass from Mt. Kosmaj
natron-lime-silica glass - all samples
Vessel glass produced from Levantine sand, mostly
recycled glass.
Windows glass has same characteristics but unusually
high levels of manganese for the glass that is not
discoloured.This can indicate non purified minerals of
manganese and unskillfulness of the glass workers possibly
in secondary local production
One small group of pale green glass has no signs of
recycling, presenting the most similar material to standard
roman composition but with some differences in recipes.

15. THANK YOU