Le verre des mosaïques d’Albanie : continuités et ruptures des importations et des techniques de production

The contribution presents the results of archaeometric analyses carried out on mosaic tesserae within the framework of the project Corpus of mosaics of Albania. The work covers more than 200 tesserae taken from the sites of Butrint (4th-6th century), Elbasan (6th century), Lin (6th century) and Durres (6th-8th century). Firstly, floor and walls mosaics are presented, with a focus on chronology and workshops. Secondly, the results of the PIXE/PIGE, LA-ICP-MS, SEM-EDS analyses are illustrated, highlighting particularly the importation routes of the materials and technical characteristics. Concerning raw glass, the results of this study show that Egyptian (HIMT, Foy 2) and Levantine typologies (Levantine I and Levantine II) are represented, with an increase of Levantine typology for certain colours from the 6th century onwards. This reveals probable commercial supply routes, pointing to a gradual opening-up to the East during the 6th century. Concerning the opacification and colouring techniques, in contrast to what can be observed in Italy and in some centres of Asia Minor, we observe the disappearance of the use of antimony from the 4th century onwards and the use of innovative dyes and pigments between the 6th and 8th centuries, similar to those used in Albanian, Merovingian and Lombard beads. Although raw glass continued to be imported, the techniques for making certain colours changed, revealing westernization and secondary production on a local scale.