EVIDENCE OF AU – HG GILDING PROCESS IN POST BYZANTINE ECCLESIASTICAL SILVERWARES (CHALICES) OF EASTERN THESSALY BY PXRF

Abstract

Silver and gold alloys have been widely applied in the making of precious objects during the byzantine and
post byzantine eras. A major category is the “ecclesiastical silver”, which was used in the celebration of the
liturgy (chalices, disks, asterisks, blessing and benediction crosses, processional crosses, liturgical fans,
wedding crowns etc.). This study focuses on post-byzantine ecclesiastical silver chalices, kept in parish
churches and monasteries of Eastern Thessaly. They have been studied with non-destructive analysis
technique (XRF) for the clarification of the role of gold (Au) in the Silver – Copper – Gold alloy. The main
question answered in this work is whether gold (Au) was part of the compositional alloy or decorative and
moreover if it was applied with amalgamation procedure (Au - Hg alloy). By using X-Ray fluorescence
spectroscopy, mathematic procedures for data processing it is proved that in all cases gold was decorative
and applied with fire gilding amalgamation process. Thus, in this work, it is proved that “fire mercury
process” was the primary procedure for gilding ecclesiastical silver in Eastern Thessaly in the post-byzantine
period.