I mosaici paleocristiani del Veneto: il punto di vista dell’archeometria.

The present paper summarizes raw materials and production technologies used in Roman and Byzantine glass, and the main results of the archaeometric study on polychrome tesserae from the two only Early Christian glass mosaic known in the Veneto region (Italy), i.e. the mosaic which decorated the votive chapel of St Prosdocimus in Padova and that, still in situ, which decorates the vaults of the votive chapel of St Maria Mater Domini in Vicenza. Results give us valuable insights into the complexities of the mosaic glass industry in the Northern Adriatic area during the 6th century AD. In particular, new hypotheses on the supply and origin of materials, the chronological attribution of tesserae and, consequently, the organization of mosaic workshops and workers’ practices and skills are here advanced, by means of characterisation of the base-glass composition, opacifiers/pigments and colourants and their correlations with the chromatic appearance of the samples.