A Research of the Material of the Core of Metal Threads from the Fourteenth-Century Slabbed Graves at the Plateau of Eski-Kermen

Abstract

In 2020, the excavations of the fourteenth-century burials in slabbed graves 5/2020 and 8/2020 located in front of the main basilica in the central area of the town atop of the plateau of Eski-Kermen discovered metal threads of thin strips of precious metal spirally wound round the core. The present research analyses the material of this core. It is known that most often the strips of precious metal were wound around the core with protein base (silk, wool, or hair) or with cellulose base (linen, cotton, or hemp). The samples of three metal threads were analysed, though no preserved organic core was found in one of the samples. Electron microscopy of the threads recorded their fibrous core, thus showing that the base of metal threads was not hair, skin, or tendons. Further, the core material was investigated by gas chromatography – mass spectrometry. The research detected trace amounts of two amino-acids, glycine and alanine, which appeared in silk fibroin only. The results of this study suggest that the core of metal threads was made of silk cloth. This indicates an imported, probably Mediterranean origin of the metal threads found in the burials at Eski-Kermen plateau. The artefacts made of such threads were possibly brought to the Crimea by Genoese merchants. It is known that in the fourteenth century various silk cloths were a priority commodity in the trade carried on by the Italians in Caffa and the towns of Genoese Gazaria.