Goldsmithery

Ancient goldsmithing and silversmithing was sometime called "the divine art of goldsmithing", and it was often viewed as something very mysterious, shrouded in secrets. Many of the techniques used appeared similar to alchemy. Historical text suchs as manuals, descriptions of techniques, and references such as the recipes in the Leyden papyrus and Stockholm papyrus, are descriptions of alchemy. The famous "Schedula diversarum artium"(On diverse arts), a handbook by Monk Teophilus from the 12th century, not only details tools and techniques, but it also outlines a way of making gold from the powdered basilisca. To make it more interesting, there is given the receipe how to breed basilisca. The atmosphere in the underground cellar compartments was often very mysterious. The reconstruction of an old workshop located in our museum’s cellars displays original tools and machinery which are unique by today’s standards.
Our exposition presents a step by step guide of how gold and silversmithing takes place, from material preparation, to how the work is completed, using authentic period tools and machinery. Material preparation involves creating an alloy from the correct proportions of precious metal and non precious metals, such as adding copper to silver or gold, to make an alloy best for crafting the final object. Depending on proportions of precious and non precious metal in the silver or gold alloy, we say that the silver or gold is of a certain fineness or assay. Note that pure silver and gold are too soft for object production, which is why they are never used for crafting objects. A silversmith or goldsmith always works with a silver or gold alloy, often melted with copper. Metals are melted together in a vessel called a crucible, and once the alloy is melted to the liquid state, it is poured into a mold to get the form of an ingot. Once the ingot has cooled it is rolled, hammered, drawn, or it goes through regime of other mechanical treatments to make the ingot into the needed form. For example, a plate results from hammering or rolling the ingot on rolling mills. Please note the hand operated rolling mills that are presented in our exposition. To make wire, our goldsmith or silversmith used the drawing bench, where the thin ingot was drawn through a number of gradually smaller and smaller holes of hard steel.
Once the material is ready in the form of a plate, wire, or small casted details such as legs used for making sugar pots, our goldsmith or silversmith began to craft the final shape of his object. Hammering techniques are often used to produce an object’s final shape.  Please note the different forms of hammers which were used on different anvils. Other "backgrounds" were also used, and these were sometimes hard like metal anvils, or soft like blocks of wood, or the often used repousse pitch. Hammer blows and strokes were often not applied directly to the elaborated metal surface, but the force of the blow was transformed to the elaborated metal in indirectly with the use of chasing punches.
Different tools and techniques of cutting and shaping metal were used, depending on the material and shape of the elaborated object. A diverse and interesting collection of tools used for such purposes are present in our museum. Our collection includes original dies and stamps that we received from traditional workshop in Kraków.  The material in this collection is important  to study the subject of  Polish patriotic jewelery and metal crafts, which charaterizes the historical culture of goldsmithing and metal handicraft in Poland. These original objects are often displayed with the tools that crafted them.
Individual elements of an object had to be joined together. The most typical way of joining two metal objects is the technique of soldering. Soldering requires very high temperatures, and historically soldering was performed in furnaces similar to the one reconstructed here. A similar reconstruction can also be seen in the museum Den Gamle By located in Aarhus, Denmark.  After some time, smaller objects like jewelry were soldered by the flame of an alcohol lamp, and this flame was skillfully controlled by using a mouth blow pipe. Joining by soldering is well known when discussing metalworking, however, other techniques such as riveting or use of screws were also utilized. This joining technique is helpful when it comes to identifying, dating, and attributing chalices or other objects joined by screws.  Different workshop cultures, in different time periods, used specific forms of screws, and knowledge of their history is helpful to historians and experts on ancient silver and goldsmithing.
When the object was ready, its surface had to be elaborated until the desired finish was achieved. Let’s suppose that our silversmith or goldsmith wants the surface of his object to be plain and polished. The surface would need to be worked by files, then by scrapers, and finally by abrasive materials. Glass paper has been known for centuries; Benvenuto Cellini references glass paper in his Treatises (1568). Also very popular was the so-called Tripoli Ground, known today as Rotten Stone. This is an abrasive mineral, often of dark green color, and it is used for polishing. The name Tripoli comes from the town Tripolis, where it is said that this mineral was mined in the old days. We are proud here to present an original Tripoli Ground that was in use in small workshop in the beginning of 20th century, which has survived to our times. The name “Tripoli” continues to be used today as a name for modern abrasives.
After the surface was worked on with files, scrapers and abrasives were often used in the polished to shinning process. Polishing was achieved by continually working abrasive powders or waxes into the object’s surface. Waxes are simply fine oxides of different metals or calcium that were mixed with wax to make a polishing wax, also referred to as a polishing paste. The process of polishing was performed by hand, or by use of simple machine such as a spinning wheel. We proudly present such a polishing machine in our museum that is powered by a pedal, similar to an old sewing machine. The other polishing technique used in the old workshops is burnishing. This is performed by burnishing elaborated surface with burnishes, which are tools with polished heads made of hard stone, agate, or steel. To avoid friction, the burnished area was wet with a solution of water and soap.
Ornamentation of the objects fabricated in workshops like the one reconstructed here employed many different techniques and special tools. One example of this is the art of engraving, and all wide range of tools used for engraving such as burins and gravers. Additional information on goldsmithing and silversmithing, the reconstructed workshop, techniques and tools used in metallurgy for goldsmiths, as well as the conservation of historical objects, is provided by our museum on seminars, workshops, and classes offered through our museum.

The English term "Gorget" refers to two main kinds of gorgets in Polish culture. The first type of gorget is called “Ryngraf” in Polish—from the German word Ringkragen—and is derived from the name of an collar tht is the upper part of the armor. This type of gorget has a triangular form and was commonly placed on the exterior of a dress, outfit, or uniform.
The second type of gorget is known in Polish as "Kaplerz", or a “Nobleman’s icon”. These gorgets are usually a rectangular plate, often with a rounded upper part. Other gorget variations include a smaller oval form, often worn by ladies. Typically, the front side of a Nobleman's icon shows an engraved picture of Madonna, or Madonna with Child, where only faces and hands are oil painted in the style of Russian icon images. The Nobleman's icon gorget was originally worn under the dress in leather bags, or in a type of envelope. At home, or in a tent during war times, they were hung on the walls of sleeping chambers and were used as prayer tokens.
Gorgets were customarily gifts from close relatives, parents, older brothers, or beloved uncles, and the reverse sides of gorgets were often embellished with the effigy of the gift giver’s patron saint. For example, the image of Saint Barbara would indicate that the recipient knight’s mother or wife bore that name.
The paper describes techniques used in ornamentation of gorgets. 36 illustrations present different types of gorgets as well as the tools and techniques used for fabrication and ornamentation.

The paper explains why the knowledge on old workshop, with it's machinery, tools and techniques is of help in working with objects from old metalsmithing, silversmithing and goldsmithing. The characteristics of used materials, traces of tools and techniques employed in process of creation are helpful in elaboration, dating and often in choosing proper procedures of conservation.
The content is presented in the following order:
- preparation of the material in the past was different then today, as it's been done by the goldsmith himself in his workshop. Distinguishing between the hammered plate and rolled plate for example helps with dating  (the rolling mills appear sometime on the end of the XVIth century).
- casting the ingot
- making plates and wires, elements made of twisted wires.
- different ways of joining elements together (soldering, riveting, use of screws). Soldering by diffusion. Nails.
- repousse - bas relief. The "usual" method with use of the repousse pitch and the "Caradosso method" as described by Benvenuto Cellini in his "Treatise on goldsmithing and sculpture".
- making three dimensional forms by hammering. Rising.
- elaborating surfaces after joining elements together; files, scrapers, abrasive materials like tripoli ground.
- ornamental techniques on surfaces - applying textures, engraving, sculpting.
- polishing
- patinas, coloring
- enamelling.
- gem engraving and cutting. 
Pointing out the importance of such considerable information from old sources, like the famous Theban Papyri. The choice of such sources is indicated in Bibliography.

The paper begins with some basic information on metallurgy and structures of metals and it’s alloys used in silversmithing and goldsmithing. Many problems that appear later begin at early stage of work if the structure of metal or alloy is not proper.
Also the improper conducting of mechanical operations (rolling, hammering, etc.) may result in wholes, splits, etc. damages that will appear during finishing operations.
Then author indicates some ways of repairing damaged objects – always following recommendation by custodian – conservator, responsible for procedures to be conducted in certain case. There is description of fixing splits or cracks by hard soldering with use of thin strip of appropriate metal to be inserted in the crack before soldering. Then there are indicated techniques of making missing parts using techniques like the a’ jour (pierced) work, repousse and engraving, plus simple stamping for repairment of bordures of certain kind. Finally there are mentioned silver censers from the Basilica St. John’s church in Toruń, PL.

Benvenuto Cellini (1500 - 1571), Italian sculptor and goldsmith became an "icon" of the art of goldsmithing not just due to his art but also thanks to his two books: the "Autobiography" and the "Treatises on Goldsmithing and Sculpture". This paper deals with the "Treatise on Goldsmithing", which may be seen as the second goldsmith manual book in the history of modern European gold and silversmithing (after the 12th century manuscript by Teophilus Presbyter).
The content is presented in the following order:
- The importance of drawings by Etienne Delaune and description of pieces in different museums’ collections, including the Bargello Museum in Italy, for better understanding of the Treatise’s content.
- The history of different editions of the Treatise. The original content was changed by Gherardo Spini's censorship, so the first edition (1568) does not present the original text,  as it was dictated by Cellini. Fortunately the original was found and published for the first time in it's original form in 1857. Editions in foreign languages and the importance of the English translation by C. R. Ashbee in 1888.
- A short description of the content of the Treatise according to the order of chapters.
- Some remarks on Cellini as an artist and craftsman.
- The use of the Treatise for historians and conservators of old gold and silver pieces. A detailed illustration of the repousee method known also as Caradosso method, which is precisely described by Cellini and may be the prove of a good use of the Treatise in present time.

The content is presented in the following order:
1. Introduction
The paper describes and explaines in depth some selected techniques and the tools employed in applying ornamentation, continuing and expanding on the subject raised in the book: Dawne złotnictwo - technika i terminologia (Old goldsmithery - The Techniques and Ternminology), Michał Gradowski, Warszwa, 1980.
2. Surface Preparation. Planishing, filing (inc. information on history of files and their production), grinding and the application of the scraper.
3. Texture Application andthe two main varietes. Reticulation. Texture applied by mechanic al, mean s. Toiols for applying texture - punches and hammers.
4. How to apply drawing, design on metal surfaces. The application of pattern books.
5. Hammered, stamped or pressed ornamentation. Punches, hammers and presses.
6. Engraving and the two main varieties. The toiols and techniques.
7. Ajoure' and other piercing techniques.
8. Polishing and Matting. The two main polishing techniques. Firestain and how to deal with it.

Zdałem sobie sprawę, że ze starym złotnictwem jest coraz bardziej tak, jak z egipskimi piramidami. Istnieje rozległa wiedza egiptologiczna, ale nie bardzo dziś wiadomo jak zbudowano piramidy. Postanowiłem zatem powstrzymać się od dywagacji na tematy raczej przynależne rasowym krytykom czy historykom sztuki, a opowiedzieć co nieco o tym, czym i jak wykonywano obiekty złotnicze w czasach, kiedy istniało jeszcze klasyczne rękodzieło złotnicze. Odchodzi ono po przeszło siedmiu tysiącach lat swego istnienia w niepamięć, właśnie teraz, na naszych oczach, i już za kilkanaście, może kilkadziesiąt lat z dziełami klasycznej sztuki złotniczej będzie tak, jak jest z piramidami egipskimi: owszem, są, istnieją, widać, jakie są piękne, wiemy nawet, kiedy je zbudowano, czasem znamy imiona budowniczych, ale jak i czym je zrobiono - to pytanie, jak się obawiam, pozostanie w dużej mierze bez odpowiedzi. I dlatego rozpocznę od opowieści o pozornie najprostszym, ale najtrudniejszym do opanowania narzędziu złotniczym, czyli o młotku w najróżniejszych jego formach. Opowiemy więc o zasadach konstrukcji tego z pozoru prostego narzędzia, a następnie omówimy różne rodzaje młotków oraz sposoby ich zastosowań.

...We may divide hammers into two categories, regarding direct or indirect contact/ impact of head of the hammer with/onto elaborated piece. The direct way is simple hammering; indirect way involves the third party tool like chisels and punches. In every case the tool must be operated in most controlled way, regarding the direction and the force of each applied blow/strike. Keeping this in mind let us say something on basics of construction of hammers...

During the early modern period goldsmithery was quite an important trade in Glogau (now Głogów), a town in the Habsburg Empire, near the border with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Despite relatively big number of masters active there in the 17th century, they did not manage to form a guild. That is why some of the masters decided to join an organization founded in 1676 in adjacent Wschowa (Fraustadt in German), located on the other side of the border. In 1699 a group of four Catholic goldsmiths from Glogau have finally established a guild together with painters and sculptors. Taking advantage of an anti-Protestant climate in the Habsburg Monarchy and by using legal loopholes, they managed to block the non-Catholic craftsmen from joining the ranks of the organization. After Leopold I confirmed the charter of the newly established guild in 1701, the Protestant goldsmiths active in Glogau were considered as illegal craftsmen and consequently forced to leave the town and move their workshops elsewhere. So did all the masters enrolled in the guild in Wschowa, who emigrated to nearby towns in the Habsburg Empire: Bauten, Liegnitz, Freystadt and Schweidnitz and in one case to Halle in Saxony.

U Rijeci je tijekom vladavine cara Leopolda I. (1658.-1705.), u skladu s duhom merkantilizma, počela jačati obrtnička djelatnost. Ona je, uz proglašenje slobodnom lukom 1719. godine, bila temelj gospodarskog i kulturnog razvoja grada. Osim velikog broja stranaca koji su u Rijeku doselili zbog poslovnih prilika, javni život Riječana su i dalje u velikoj mjeri oblikovale redovničke zajednice augustinaca, isusovaca, kapucina, benediktinki te franjevaca na obližnjem Trsatu, dok je dominantnu ulogu u vjerskom životu grada imao arhiđakon Zborne crkve. Zlatno doba grada Rijeke bilo je, uz to, vrijeme kada su brojni građani, članovi bratovština i redovničkih zajednica darivali sakralne objekte novim liturgijskim predmetima od plemenitih metala. Iako je određeni broj takvih djela ostao sačuvan, postoje i narudžbe zlatarskih radova o kojima se saznaje samo iz starijih publikacija i arhivskih izvora. U izlaganju će prvenstveno biti riječ o umjetninama što se čuvaju u riječkim crkvama, no pokušat će se rekonstruirati broj i značaj liturgijskih predmeta kojima se nažalost više ne može ući u trag, a mogu se povezati s riječkim donatorima i naručiteljima.

K významným moravským centrům zlatnické produkce období baroka, patřila, vedle dvou královských měst Brna a Olomouce, i Kroměříž, kde také olomoučtí biskupové razili od počátku 17. stol. až do roku 1759 stříbrné a zlaté mince. Z toho času bylo nově nalezeno několik stříbrných předmětů opatřených výrobní značkou Mikuláše Františka Indegrentze, působícího i ve funkci vardajna biskupské mincovny. Úkolem následujícího textu je shrnutí historie barokního zlatnického řemesla v Kroměříži a první odborné zhodnocení těchto nálezů, včetně autorského určení několika dalších liturgických předmětů ze stříbra, nesoucích punc města Kroměříže.

The aim of the text is to publish the scarce preserved information concerning Brno 18th century silversmith Johann Christian Fischer that has been discovered so far, and to put this information into the context of Brno goldsmithing of the second third of the 18th century.

The presented text creates an incomplete mosaic of the life stories of the goldsmiths and silversmiths of the name of Vogelhund, working in Brno in the late 17th century and the following 18th century, inspired by the discovery of further two works which can be attributed to Andreas Vogelhund, the creator of the Monstrance of the Golden Sun of Moravia (Zlaté slunce Moravy) from the treasury of St. Wenceslas Cathedral in Olomouc.

Mojí snahou je navázat na výsledky bádání brněnského historika umění Václava Richtera, publikované roku 1948 ve Vědecké ročence Moravského uměleckoprůmyslového v Brně. Díky archivním pramenům, uloženým v Moravském zemském archivu, fondu k brněnským jezuitům, jako první správně připsal mistrovský punc IW na stříbrném rouchu a trůnu tuřanské Bohorodičky brněnskému zlatníku Johanu Jakubovi Wegelinovi. Následující text si pak klade za cíl představit další předměty, dnes v majetku brněnské kapituly a tuřanského poutního kostela, zhotovených na přímou objednávku jezuitského řádu v Brně, ale i další objevné poznatky, především autorská určení a popsání historie proměn kolekcí liturgického stříbra v obou kostelích.

The text is the continuation of the article “Barokní liturgické stříbro
bývalé jezuitské koleje v Brně, dochované v diecézní katedrále na Petrově a poutním mariánském kostele v Brně–Tuřanech” (Baroque liturgical silver of the former
Jesuit college in Brno preserved in the diocese cathedral of Petrov and Marian
pilgrimage church in Brno–Tuřany, Zprávy památkové péče 2016/76/appendix),
and it presents further objects made of precious metals manufactured for the Jesuit
order in the Baroque Brno; more importantly, it determines the authorship of the
today unaccounted for silver frame of the painting of Salus Populi Romani, which,
in accordance with tradition, the Brno college received soon after it was established
in the early 1570s. The merciful Marian painting of Our Lady of the Snows adorns
the tabernacle of the main altar of the Jesuit Church of the Assumption of Our
Lady in Brno.

Si les objets cultuels en métal précieux ont occupé une place de choix pendant des siècles dans la liturgie, il n’en est plus de même aujourd’hui. Le statut des objets du culte a évolué dans l’enseignement de l’Église catholique. Il s’agit donc aussi d’une question théologique. On le comprend très bien en regardant de près ce que les rituels expriment. Pour résumer, on constate aujourd’hui un déplacement de l’objet liturgique (vases précieux) vers le sujet de la célébration (l’assemblée des fidèles engagés dans l’action liturgique elle-même).