Fragments of glass bracelets

The technique for producing glass mass was developed in the 2nd millennium BCE in Egypt and the Near East. To manufacture glass objects, three main components were needed: sand (silicon dioxide SiO₂), soda (sodium carbonate Na₂CO₃), and potash (potassium carbonate K₂CO₃). The color of the glass was achieved by adding oxides of various metals (such as lead, tin, etc.). Not only vessels were made from glass mass, but also jewelry. The most common items were glass beads in various colors—either monochrome or multicolored—as well as glass bracelets.

 

Researchers note that glass bracelets were widespread across much of Europe and were characteristic of Christian, pagan, and even Muslim cultural regions (such as the Iberian Peninsula). These items came in a wide variety. The bands of the bracelets featured circular, oval, square, or semi-circular cross-sections and could be smooth, undecorated, twisted (torded), or adorned with spirals of colored glass.

 

During the 9th–13th centuries, glass bracelets were very common in the territories of the Byzantine Empire and its sphere of influence. It is believed that Byzantine influence, along with cultural and trade connections, brought the fashion of these expressive ornaments to Central and Eastern Europe. From the first half of the 11th century to the 13th century, the production and popularity of glass bracelets thrived in the cities of Kievan Rus. In the 13th–14th centuries, the residents of cities in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania adorned themselves with such bracelets.

 

Chemical composition studies of the glass bracelets widespread in Central and Eastern Europe during the 11th–13th centuries show that the so-called forest glass or ash glass was commonly used—glass mass produced from a mixture of sand (silica) and wood ash. The color, transparency, and shine of the glass depended on the quantity and ratio of sodium, potassium carbonate, lead, and other impurities present in the mixture. For example, a high amount of lead oxide in the glass mass made it more transparent, glossy, and malleable. Lead glass was also more suitable for decorating bracelets—spirals of colored glass could be embedded into it.

 

In the context of Central and Eastern Europe, fragments of glass bracelets are most often found in the cultural layers of urban-type settlements and political or economic centers. They are found very rarely in burial monuments. Lithuanian archaeological material is no exception in this regard. Fragments of monochrome and bicolor glass bracelets in various colors have been found in the Upper Town of Kernavė, dating to the 13th–14th centuries. In 1940, five fragments of glass bracelets were discovered on Vilnius Castle Hill, dated to the 11th–13th centuries. Several dozen fragments of various glass bracelets were found in the cultural layers at the foot of Castle Hill, in the area of the Early Brick Castle, dating no later than the late 13th to early 14th century. From burial monuments in Lithuania, only a single glass bracelet is known—discovered in Semigallia, at the Pavirvytė (Mažeikiai district) cemetery, and dated to the 10th–11th centuries.

 

Presented here are five fragments of glass bracelets discovered during the 2019–2021 archaeological investigations in the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania’s Palace of the Grand Dukes. As mentioned, these artifacts are associated with the environment and community of the Early Brick Castle of Vilnius.

 

The described fragments of glass bracelets are exhibited in the permanent exhibition of the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania (Route I “History, Archaeology, Architecture”, Hall 4, Showcase 4.4).