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A set of 33 fragments of lustre-decorated ceramics uncovered during an archaeological excavation in Manises (Valencia, Spain) have been studied. These ceramics were produced in Manises from the 14th to the 18th century. This well-dated set of ceramic shards represents the diversity of Manises lustre production and is a complete time sequence of reference for the technological analysis. Texture analysis of the glazes has been carried out by SEM-EDAX, the inner and outer surfaces of the lustre decorations being analysed with non-destructive ion beams by PIXE and RBS, and also by high-resolution electron microscopy. The results are compared with other lustre productions and the time trend of the microstructures, glaze and lustre composition is analysed. It is concluded that Sn was used to opacify glazes until the beginning of the 17th century and that changes in the lustre microstructure occurred around 1500. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gold leaf decoration on Islamic glazed ceramics appears in the twelfth–thirteenth century in Iran. In late fourteenth century, many craftsmen were deported by Tamerlane – alias Timur-i Leng (1336–1405) – to Samarkand or Shakhrisabz in order to adorn the monuments he ordered to settle his power. Thus, gilded tiles are quite frequent in Timurid architecture and are regarded as a heritage of Iranian techniques of glaze decoration. This paper is dealing with the history of ceramic techniques and its first aim is to propose the main steps of the making process of gold leaf decoration. This study implies the combination of non-destructive surface observations and analyses such as SEM-EDS, Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and white light interferometry in the light of an ancient text describing the know-how. The other issue of the study is to compare the obtained data on two corpuses of sherds: Iranian vessel dating from the twelfth to thirteenth century, and architectural Timurid tiles dating from the fourteenth to fifteenth century, so as to grasp the evolution of the technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lustre is one of the most fascinating surface decorative effects produced on glazed ceramics. This technique seems to have been born in the ninth century in factories created by the Arabs during their conquests in the Orient (Mesopotamia, Egypt and Persia). Arab potters spread their knowhow all over the Mediterranean basin, especially Spain. Italian Renaissance potters succeeded in applying it to their production. The technique is based on a specific firing of the glazed pottery in a reducing atmosphere in the presence of metallic salts. The result is a surface layer with a metallic appearance, exhibiting various colours, from gold to brown or red. This paper provides the chemical nature and the physical structure of ancient gold like lustre layers and compares them with contemporary lustres produced by a Spanish craftsman reproducing the traditional Islamic techniques. Various analytical investigations (atomic force microscopy, high resolution SEM, particle induced X-ray emission, Rutherford backscattering, TEM, X-ray induced photoelectron spectroscopy, time of flight SIMS and grazing X-ray diffraction) were carried out as well as investigations into the coloured appearance by spectrophotometry. The results show that the lustre layer consists of silver and copper particles of nanometric dimensions dispersed in a glassy matrix. A model of the lustre formation is proposed wherein the development of a new superficial glaze is described. Comparison between ancient and modern production shows how the techniques have varied through the ages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]