Medieval woodworking techniques on the palisade Byens planker and other material at Kongens Nytorv (KBH 3829) Copenhagen (original) (raw)
Related papers
In the debate on the economy of the Early Middle Ages, there is a contradictive understanding between the “ruralisation” implying “radical simplification” (Wickham 2005) and the continuation of long-distance trade with high peasant mobility (Theuws 2012; Theuws in press). The argument for putting long-distance trade back on the research agenda to challenge the dominance of the town-hinterland model (Theuws 2012, 30) is picked up in the MA thesis by dating and provenancing the barrels and timbers found in the linings of wells and the revetments excavated at the Oegstgeest-Rijnfront site, an early medieval riverine settlement on the north bank of the Old Rhine near present day Oegstgeest in The Netherlands. The construction of Leiden’s BioScience Park demanded extensive excavations to document the archaeological record of the settlement ex-situ. Post-excavation analyses are still in process. The main aim of the present study was to compare the settelement's chronology and the socio-economic relations with other riverine settlements along the Old Rhine. Since precise dating can at present not be established by pottery, the thesis focused on the archaeological timber finds. The aim was to determine (i) the felling dates and (ii) the geographical origin of the timber elements from the settlement by means of tree ring research. Results of previous and present tree ring studies were synthesized to get an up-to-date understanding of the settlement's construction activity. The data-set consists of 527 documented wooden elements recovered during the two campaigns of 2009 and 2014 and excavated from wells and revetments. The dendrochronological study includes the measurement of 152 samples from sixteen archaeological features, which reflect 96 tree series (TS). The TS were grouped into six tree groups (TG). Thirteen of the sixteen features could be dated. In the synthesis of all present data, the estimated felling dates (i.e. presence of sapwood) and exact felling dates (i.e. presence of a bark edge) were markers for establishing absolute dated construction activity in the riverine settlement. To conclude, activity can be plotted absolutely between AD 644 ± 1 to terminus post quem AD 684 ± 8. Still, an earlier starting date should to be taken into consideration based on several earlier terminus post quem dates, of which tpq AD 561 ± 5 is the oldest. The provenance of the timbers from greenwood compare best with the reference chronology that represents timbers that are excavated along the Dutch lower Rhine and Meuse rivers, signifying a 'local' timber source. The Oak trees used of four barrels and seven reused planks (possible reused ship wood) have their geographical origin in the German Rhineland. The features predate the heyday of Dorestad. Ring-width series from Oak barrels excavated at Ribe and Ipswich dating to the second half of the eight century were compared with the Oegstgeest-Rijnfront barrels. The ring-width series strongly correlate with each other. Remarkably, the provenance of the Oak employed for the construction of the barrels at the sites of Oegstgeest-Rijnfront, Ribe and Ipswich is strongly related. This indicates that a distinct geographical origin in German Rhineland provided for over hunderd years the raw material for the production of barrels. The exact location is at present not determined. The dendrochronological study established that long-distance trade can be detected in the Rhine estuary before the rise of Dorestad. Supervisors: Prof. Dr F. Theuws (Leiden University) and Prof. Dr E. Jansma (Utrecht University) Acknowledgements Leiden University (LU) and Utrecht University (UU) funded the dendrochronological research; LU as part of the post-excavation analyses and UU in the light of the researchproject: The Dark Age of the Lowlands in an interdisciplinary light: people, landscape and climate in the Netherlands between AD 300 and 1000 (NWO, 2012-2017; grant-number 360-60-110). The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE) provided an internship of a year at its Dendrochronology Laboratory where the analyses were performed. The Netherlands Centre for Dendrochronology/RING Foundation shared their tree ring data collection on early medieval material.
IAWA …, 2005
Wooden altarpieces are important features of European medieval material culture, especially of the Late Gothic Fine Arts from the 15 th and 16 th century. Many of them were carved in the Brabantine towns of Antwerp, Brussels and Mechelen in present-day Belgium. Although they were highly esteemed and exported all over Europe, little is known about their production process. In order to understand the context of the creation of the altarpieces, a detailed analysis of the wood has been completed to supplement and test historical documentation and art historical approaches. Tree-ring patterns and anatomical features of 209 wooden sculptures from collections of different museums were analyzed. Tree-ring analysis proved the 15 th -16 th century origin of the sculptures but also allowed a detailed technical characterization of the carversʼ basic material. The striking uniformity of the grain and the sawing pattern revealed that medieval woodcarvers preferred quarter sawn oak lumber, imported from the Baltic area. Stylistic and iconographic hypotheses concerning the current setting of several altarpieces could be founded, based on the wood anatomical and dendrochronological observations. Intensive collaboration between wood biologists and art historians proved to be essential in order to reconstruct the creation process of carved wooden altarpieces.
Provenancing Baltic timber from art historical objects: success and limitations
Journal of archaeological …, 2005
During the Middle Ages northern Belgium and The Netherlands were gradually deforested. A steadily rising demand for quality timber obliged merchants to look for new timber sources. From the 13th century onwards, large volumes of timber were imported from surrounding regions and, despite the remote supply area, merchants of the Hanseatic League managed to organize a huge timber trade from towns around the Baltic Sea.
Dendrochronologia, 2021
Historic furniture has a great ethnographic and historical value, as styles and designs responded to specific uses, fashion trends and the social status of the buyer or the commissioner. Placing it in an exact chronological and geographical production context increases our knowledge about preferences for materials, designs, and woodworking practices for household commodities. Here we present the results of dendrochronological research carried out on an English chest from a private collection. The chest is of a hybrid construction, with boarded sides and back, and a joined front with four carved linenfold panels. It had been described as made of Baltic oak and dating to the mid-16th century, a crucial transition period for which only a few early chests have been analysed. Our results demonstrate, however, that the wood from the lid, side boards and back originates from the south of England. Heartwood/sapwood border in the left side board has allowed an estimated felling date for the tree of between 1520 and 1552. Terminus post quem dates of the rest of the elements pre-dating this interval indicate that the chest was likely made in the second quarter of the 16th century, as initially described. Three linenfold panels show typical features of Baltic wood, whereas the fourth one has different characteristics and could have been made with English oak, but the lack of access to the tree-ring patterns hampers verifying this hypothesis. Mixture of provenances suggests a production workshop in London, although other town in the south with a major timber market cannot be discarded. The construction features are described, and two distinct marks found in the chest are discussed in the regional context of its production. To allow the compilation and inventory of such marks, the 'Marks on Wood' community has been created in Zenodo and is presented here.
Pascale Fraiture (ed), Tree Rings, Art, Archaeology. Proceedings of a conference, 2011
Since 2001, the Brussels architectural and archaeological heritage has benefit from dendrochronological studies, thanks to an agreement by the Monuments and Sites Directorate (MSD) of the Brussels-Capital Region and the Laboratory of dendrochronology of the University of Liège. The main part of requests result from various regional or municipal actors in heritage in the framework of protecting monuments, preliminary studies before restoration or archaeological research. At the current time, no program line of dendrochronological research is envisaged by the authorities. Nevertheless, the following years should see the determination of targeted zones coupled with the establishment of a dendrochronological research. Through examples of studies realized by the Royal Museums of Art and History in association with the Monuments and Sites Directorate or by the Unit Historical Heritage Brussels, the contributions and limits of dendrochronology in the analysis of buildings will be underlined. The research of the La Cambre abbey, the Merode’s Residence, a living house in the protected zone around the Grand Place, the Town Hall of Brussels and the Saint-Jean-et-Etienne-aux-Minimes church will be alternately approached. The first three cases result from multidisciplinary research, mixing archaeological investigations, historical studies and dendrochronological analyses, preliminaries of restoration or demolition projects. The last two cases present the combined results of archive perusals and dendrochronological examinations of the frames before their future restoration. The dating of roof frames and beams allows the determination of a very precise phasing of the studied site. However, it exceeds the strict framework of the establishment of a global evolution of the building and allows to fix a chronological implementation of techniques for various types of structure. This kind of study is rarely realised in building studies in the Brussels region. Putting these various researches into perspective will lead to a socioeconomic reflection on the use of the wood during the Ancien Regime in Brussels and in the bordering regions, particularly on the origin, the supply and the transport of timber. Nevertheless, the main part of the difficulty met by this discipline is the dating of samples. This results from the forest environment in which the timber was extracted. It is thus essential that this type of research joins a framework of multidisciplinary study to determine the various phases of construction of an envisaged site. The dendrochronological analyses already made, or yet to come, must allow to comprehend the typology of roof frames thanks to the systematic drawings of the studied structures. The Laboratory of dendrochronology of the University of Liège will be able to gradually establish a regional evolution by the obtained dates coupled to the heritage studies.
The results of the dendroarchaeological research carried out on the 16th century altarpiece from the Evangelistas chapel at Seville Cathedral (Spain) are presented. The altarpiece consists of nine panels and was commissioned from the Flemish artist Hernando de Esturmio in AD 1553, who signed the completed work in AD 1555. The research aimed at i) registering information about the processing of the wood and panel making, ii) verifying the AD 1555 construction date, and iii) finding out the provenance of the wood. Five panels were selected for this research. The observed technological features allowed the reconstruction of the production process from borne (oak wainscots) to the final product and, based on that, two types of panels were described. Dendrochronological results showed that the wood employed in both types of panels represents a rather homogeneous group, implying that the raw material was probably transported to Seville in the same batch, and was prepared and assembled using slightly different methods to meet the requirements stipulated by the contract. Sapwood was identified in 12 of the 33 researched planks. The most recent tree-ring dates in AD 1549. Using a Bayesian approach, we obtained the combined felling date range AD 1549 to 1554 for six of the trees with a 99.7% confidence level. This would allow for a seasoning time of a couple of weeks up to four years, although we cannot discard that some of the other trees were cut earlier and had longer seasoning periods. Interestingly, our research provides evidence that the wood originated from the southwest of Sweden, representing an alternative source to the south-eastern Baltic oak commonly used for panel paintings in northern Europe in the 16th century. This is the first time that such procurement source is reported by dendrochronology in an altarpiece. Wood technological features of the planks and panels are compared to those of Baltic oak wainscots and to contemporary altarpieces in Spain and Portugal. Possible reasons for the use of this alternative procurement source are discussed.
Świerczów on the Basis of Historical Wood
2010
Miejsce is a small village located in the northern part of Opolskie province, which was recorded in historical chronicles for the first time in the thirteenth century. During the renovation of a hunting castle, which be longed to the Duchy of Ole śnica 27 dendrochronological samples were collected from dil apidated roof rafters. Some datings were obtained for 12 samples. All samples subjected to endrochronological analysis were dated at the 19 th century; the two phases or stages of renovation or extension of the building were distinguished. These preliminary stud ies illustrate the possibility of applying this method in studies of Opole Silesia at the times of renovation of historic buildings.
HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FRAMING OF A MEDIEVAL WOODEN ARTWORK THROUGH DENDROCHRONOLOGY
A small wooden cabin has been analyzed through dendrochronology. The artifact is a choir built by the lords to attend sacred functions while separated from the rest of the hall. The artwork was attributed to the workshop of Arduino da Baiso, but the wooden structure is not entirely convincing because of a stylistic incongruity between the lower carved part and the simple linear cusp, whose panels inlaid with floral motifs are very close to certain Florentine marquetry. Dendrochronological analysis demonstrates that the whole structure of the choir is coeval and that the panels of the two parts come from the same batch of trunks. This means that the entire choir was designed and built by the same workshop with fir wood, probably coming from the Tuscan Emilian Apennines.