mgr Sylwia Wajda

ORCID: 0000-0001-8100-764X

The topic of my dissertation is: Between typology and archaeometry: The origin and trade of glass in the early Middle Ages on the example of glass artefacts from the Polish–Rus’ borderland

Numerous glass artefacts—primarily ornaments such as beads, bracelets, and rings—have been discovered in the Polish-Rus’ borderland. In the largest early medieval strongholds (e.g., Czermno, Gródek nad Bugiem, Przemyśl, Chełm), the total number of finds exceeds 10,000, while in the cemeteries of Podlasie, this number reaches approximately 15,000. Archaeometric studies conducted to date have shown that most of these objects were made of lead glass (e.g., bracelets from Czermno, Czarna Wielka, and the hillfort in Sąsiadka; Wajda et al. 2024), while isotopic analyses suggest the use of lead sourced from the area between Bytom and Kraków (Wajda et al. 2024; Merkel et al. 2024). Additionally, soda-lime glass is also present in the studied region, most likely originating from the eastern Mediterranean, although its exact provenance remains insufficiently understood.

The aim of the dissertation is to determine the provenance of early medieval glass artefacts from the Polish-Rus’ borderland, with particular emphasis on archaeometric investigations (elemental and isotopic analysis). These analyses will not only enable the identification of production technologies and raw material sources but also allow for the reconstruction of trade routes and the movement of raw materials and semi-finished products across the region.

The project seeks to test hypotheses regarding: the possible import of glass from Kyivan Rus’, the existence of local glass workshops, the origin of raw materials used in lead glass production, and the identification of soda-lime glasses as imports from Byzantine and Islamic workshops. The use of advanced archaeometric techniques and the comparison of results with data from other regions will provide a novel perspective on glass production and exchange phenomena in East-Central Europe.

Publication:

Wajda S., Merkel S. W., Florkiewicz I, Jansen M., Marciniak-Maliszewska B., Barbara Wagner B., Wołoszyn M., 2024, Early mediaeval lead glass bangles from Czermno, Poland: Results of elemental and lead isotopes analyses, Archaeometry 66/2, 306-325.

Wajda S., 2024, Early medieval glass artefacts from Czermno and Gródek on the Bug River/, [w:] M. Wołoszyn (red.), The early medieval settlement complex at Czermno in the light of results from 2010-2011 research. Material evidence. Volume III. Catalogue and analyses of the selected finds.U źródeł Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej/ Fruhzeit Ostmitteleuropas 9:3, Kraków – Leipzig – Rzeszów – Warszawa, 65-276.

Wajda S., Biżuteria szklana, [w:] S. Wadyl, Z. Misiuk, E. Drozd-Wadyl (red.), 2024,Tartaczna. Studium z życia przedkolacyjnego Gdańska, tom 1, Gdańsk, 401-419.
ISBN 978-83-962432-9-4

Olczak, D. Krasnodębski, K. Bieńkowska, J. J. Gładykowska-Rzeczycka, A. Bisiecka, S. Wajda, 2024, Suraż, stan. 2 – średniowieczna nekropola na pograniczu polsko-rusko-jaćwieskim, Instytut Archeologii i Etnologii Polskiej Akademii Nauk, Warszawa.