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The industry of Roman Dacia, mainly its metallurgical branch, is fairly known through the bronze artifacts manufacture. The production of statuettes, military equipment, harness, and clothing accessories, respectively brooches, is well documented.
The brooches from Roman Dacia are made of bronze, iron and silver. Bronze is an alloy of copper (in major quantity) and other three main elements: tin, zinc and lead – the first being the best represented with 15% of the combination. The references in this field ascertained that brooches were mainly made of bronze. Yet, modern bronze is different from ancient bronze. The analysis of the chemical composition of numerous brooches in the Empire indicated that the majority are in fact made of brass metal with a high content of zinc (more than 20 %) and a low content of tin and lead, thus a more precise term for the metal they were manufactured of is "ancient bronze". The bronze employed to manufacture such garment pieces is not "specially made"; it comes from discarded or broken pieces, as archaeological excavations indicate it.
Iron was rarely used for brooches production, and, except for a few pieces, the majority of the pieces manufactured from this material originate in workshops from Barbaricum. Silver was also less employed as raw material and the situation we registered indicates mostly an interval corresponding to the 3rd century AD.
From the very beginning, two main procedures for brooches manufacturing can be generally established: by hammering and by casting.
The hammering is the most ancient technology; it consists of the warming of a metal bar which is further modeled by hammering until the desired shape is accomplished. The final stage of the piece is obtained through other operations (twisting, incision making). Several bronze pieces were manufactured in this manner, but the procedure is specific to iron brooches as it was the only known technology of shaping this metal.
The casting is the most wide spread technological procedure during the first three centuries AD. It was performed in two different ways.
Some pieces display the "lost wax" process, a technological procedure easy to follow with the help of the Bibracte mould. In the first phase, an initial mould was manufactured and, without being destroyed, it reproduced in wax the brooch type the craftsman needed. Usually it was two-valve, stone made, bronze cast or clay modeled. The second phase consisted of casting the mould. To this end, a clay support was made, respectively a frustum of a cone object, and burned in the oven to gain resistance. A soft clay layer was laid onto it, while models, also covered in clay, were carefully arranged, so that the upper part would communicate with the casting end. Then, the entire ensemble was again covered in clay. The mould thus obtained was dried, heated and the casting end turned downwards to recover the wax. Finally, the "bronze" , which was had been obtained by melting waste material, scrap pieces, discarded or broken inside melting pots, was poured in the reheated mould. After cooling the mould was broken and the pieces taken out and subjected to further manufacture operations.
The second casting procedure consists of the so-called "casting upon archetype" method. It is to be noticed that the "casting upon archetype "technique was the sole brooch casting procedure known in Dacia.
In this case, firstly, the manufacturing of a bronze, lead, iron, wood or bone model was envisioned. Such a lead model destined to the pieces’ reproduction (although found incompletely processed) was discovered at Porolissum.
It is pressed almost to the half in the smooth part of a strip of "plastic clay" (natural clay degreased with little fine sand and pulverized organic materials, probably grass or manure). Onto the model the other clay half was pressed, then the model was taken out of the mould and the two halves were joined after the molding funnel was cut up, the mould being lengthily glued. Obviously, the mould was burned when dried. Next, the metal was cast in the mould. When cooled, the mould was broken and the piece underwent further manufacturing stages. Such moulds were discovered in the brooches workshop from Napoca.
The next stage in brooch manufacturing is the removing of the moulding burrs by persistent polishing. The fasten mechanism manufacturing is another important phase and it can be of various sorts: sprigged, hinged, "buckle typed" or riveted. Regardless of its manufacturing together withy the rest of the brooch or separately, the spring execution supposes more phases. First, the pin was produced, then the metal - previously heated in order to be elastic – was wound onto a bar to form a few windings. One piece remained unwound for the chord manufacturing. Next, a number of windings were once more wound and joined with the first row in order to form the spring.
The Roman technique of making the spring together with the rest of the brooch is an early one. At the end of the 1st century AD it is replaced by the separate manufacturing of the spring. Both techniques are used in Trajan’s time. The most eloquent examples are the specimens found in the brooches workshops from Napoca and Micia.
Another important stage in the final brooch manufacturing is the decoration. For the brooches in Dacia, decoration is made by a few distinct techniques.
The punching is the simplest method; with the help of a chisel, punctured, usually linear decorations are made.
The engraving is the most utilized technique for brooches in the Roman Dacia. The motifs’ repertory includes triangles, circles, the "X" letter, and the so-called "wolf teeth" zigzag lines.
The notch cutting was used especially for the brooch’s foot decoration.
The faceting was generally made on the moulding, but certain retouches were made afterwards with the help of files.
The niello technique consists of introducing black pieces of metal (a mixture of silver and sulphates) inside various cuts created when engraving. The pieces ornamented as such generally had the upper bow part zinc-coated. This type is very rare in Dacia, where it is represented by only two pieces, definitely imports.
The enameling is the technique of melting a glass mass, with no binding material, on a metal support. The beginnings of the enameling technique are connected with the Celtic world, where the first pieces adorned this way and dating from early Latène were discovered. The Romans overtook this technique and created an entire industry of enameled brooches, especially in the Western Europe. Although enameled brooches are known in Roman Dacia, they are not locally manufactured and are imported from the western provinces.
The zinc-coating is used with brooches to give the silver impression. It is obtained by using a well-dosed quantity of zinc in the alloy to be cast.
Another procedure consists of gilding bronze or silver brooches. Technically, the gilding was made by amalgamation, the gold powder being mixed in equal quantity with mercury and then laid on the brooch with a brush; the gold was fixed by the mercury evaporation. Although this technology is not attested in Dacia, it is possible that it was used here also.
Another criterion is the massive discovery of identical brooches on a certain site.
The discovery at Porolissum of numerous identical brooches together with a piece in processing and even a model are definite arguments for the existence of local workshops during the entire period of the province.
One workshop could have also function at Ilişua, where a brooch of barbarian type in processing was found.
Furthermore, the material discovered at Micia (brooch in processing, debris, melting pots) indicates the existence of another workshop.
The workshop from Dierna is attested by the discovery of several brooches in processing and of melting pots.
Probably the only workshop known in the Empire by all its elements (plan, equipment, devices, tools, etc) is the one from Napoca. The complex is located in the southwestern part of the future municipium and dates in the Trajan’s and Hadrian’s reign, respectively until Napoca became a town. It was located in a wooden hut (7.5 X 8 m). Inside, three ovens for bronze melting, made of bricks and with a diameter of approximately 60 cm at base, were identified. Numerous melting pots were found around the ovens.
In a hole located in a corner of the construction, clay lumps used for moulds making were uncovered. The tools were chisels and scissors. The row material for moulding consisted of broken or discarded bronze pieces (strepend, hakamuri fragments). A "carpet" of fragments of broken moulds covered the entire surface of the workshop. They count 9,000 if we refer only to those of dimensions over 1 cm. Several types of brooches under processing were found, one of them being still in the mould.
The analysis of the entire discovery shows that in this particular workshop a large variety of brooch types were produced: strongly profiled, knee, Norico-Pannonian, zoomorphic and anchor-shaped brooches.
The extremely large number of moulds for strongly profiled brooches indicates a local production centered on this particular type.
It is produced under different variations (), including a local one.
They originate in the eastern Alps area, where the oldest examples were uncovered. They spread rapidly to Raetia and Germania. In east their spreading aria extended to Noricum, Pannonia Moesia, and Dacia up to the northern shore of the Black Sea. It is worth mentioning the fact that this type of brooches was intensely used by the barbaric people. Their number is very large in Dacia. Some sub-types are still fashionable in the 3rd decade of the 2nd century AD.
The knee brooches are attested by two pieces under publishing.
In what their place of birth is concerned, they originate in Noricum, and spread mainly to the German and Danubian provinces. They can also be found in Britania and even Barbaricum. They are spread throughout the entire Dacia, being one of the most common brooch types in this province. Chronologically speaking, the subtypes under discussion date up to the 3rd decade of the 2nd century AD.
Norico-Pannonian brooches are also produced in the workshop from Napoca.
Based on the moulds and pieces under processing found, two sub-types have been identified: brooches with two knobs and brooches with little wings.
They are spread mainly in Noricum and Panonnia, but they can also be found in other provinces and Barbaricum. Nineteen pieces were found in Dacia spread, except one, in Upper Dacia. They all date in the first half of the 2nd century AD, but some pieces may have been further used.
The production of zoomorphic brooches can be identified in the workshop from Napoca based on the moulds found.
Their bodies represent different animals: horses, sea horses, rams, dogs, rabbits, panthers, roosters, ducks, doves, peacocks, dolphins, leopards, fantastic animals etc.
Zoomorphic brooches are spread throughout the entire Roman Empire and Barbaricum; while the enameled ones are found mainly in West, the unenameled are noumerous in Noricum, Pannonia, Moesia, and Dacia. In this last province the majority of the pieces are concentrated in Upper Dacia. They are mainly simple, while the enameled ones are considerably fewer; they are dated in the first half of the 2nd century AD, but some may have been further employed. The pieces produced in Napoca depicted dogs and rabbits.
A single anchor-shaped head brooch is under printing.
The spreading area of this type consists of Pannonia, Dalmatia, Moesia, Dacia, Noricum, Italia, and Barbaricum. More precisely, they are centered in the first four provinces, being only sporadically and peripherally found in Italia and Noricum, near the borders with Dalmatia and Pannonia. Artifacts of this type appear in Barbaricum mainly near Pannonia and Dacia. The sub-type produced in Napoca is dated mainly in the first half of the 2nd century AD.
The above mentioned brooch types are made of bronze and out of two elements. The brooch was moulded and then the spring was made. The production was targeted towards military and civilians, men and women. All types, except for the Norico-Pannonian ones, were worn by military and civilian men. It is possible that the Norico-Pannonian brooches were sold to women originating in these two provinces, while the anchor-shaped ones were preferred by people originating south of Danube.
The workshop from Napoca produced brooches destined to a various preferences, in the local community and the surrounding area. Such pieces were found in other excavated areas of the ancient city; as for the local sub-type of strongly profiled brooch, the spreading area of the product could be established.
Although only five workshops were discovered in Dacia, such handicraft complexes were admittedly functioning in civilian or military centers.
They could be mixed, with a diversified production (brooches, military equipment, household ware etc.) or manufacture only certain objects as the example workshop from Napoca.
The industry of Roman Dacia is mainly known through its metallurgical branch and brooch production is a part of this industry.
These garments were made of recycled bronze, iron and silver. As for the manufacturing process, it consisted of two main procedures: hammering and casting. While the former was particularly used in the production of iron brooches, the later was more vastly spread. The casting was made either through the "lost wax" process, either through the "casting upon archetype" method. After it had been produced, the piece was polished and the fastening mechanism was being manufactured and assembled with the rest of the brooch. Finally, the object was decorated through different techniques, like punching, engraving, notch cutting, faceting, niello, enameling, zinc-coating, or gilding.
Although they were inexpensive objects, brooches were often repaired, as several examples show.
Despite their compact size and their reduced inventory, brooches workshops are identifiable due to the finding of moulds, pieces in processing, or identical objects in one place. Five workshops have been identified in Dacia at Porolissum, Ilişua, Micia, Dierna and Napoca. The last one mentioned is probably the only workshop in the Empire known by all its elements. It produced a large variety of brooch types: strongly profiled, knee, Norico-Pannonian, zoomorphic and anchor-shaped brooches, manufactured in two stages and destined to a large group of customers.
Although only five brooches workshops have been identified in Dacia this type of production was probably common to other military and civilian centers.
Sorin Cociş, Mihaela Mihalachi, Cociş Laura
Images and explanations: Stanca Pitner, Sorana Mişca
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