COATS OF ARMS ON TILES FROM UJAZD, OR ON 'CERAMIC ARMORIALS'

• Authors: Kajzer L.
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

The article analyses an interesting collection of stove tiles decorated with armorial bearings, found in 2003 during the exploration of the castle in Ujazd near Tomaszów Mazowiecki in the historical region of Leczyca. Most probably in the years 1636-1645, when the castle was turned into an early-baroque style residence by Kacper Denhoff, all the fittings, including late-Gothic stoves, were removed. Some of the destroyed stove tiles were discovered by archaeological methods. Although many tiles were badly damaged and it was impossible to explore the whole deposit, the analysis has disclosed an interesting type of tiles, covered with green, brown or olive glaze, with heraldic bearings on them. The collection can be dated to the second half of the 15th c., with some of the items possibly coming from the early 16th c. Within this material, 16 knightly coats of arms were identified with certainty and several others tentatively. Bearing in mind that the finds were far from complete, it can be estimated that the stoves in Ujazd had images of 25-30 coats of arms represented on them. The collection was compared with heraldic tiles found in other sites within the widely understood province of Great Poland (Boleslawiec on the Prosna, Inowlodz, Jarocin, Oporów, Raciazek, Rogozno), and with the largest available sets, found in Gniezno and Jankowo Dolne. It is worth stressing that in the second half of the 15th c. the Polish heraldic system was taking its final shape and being codified, and the coats of arms found on the tiles in question correspond to a significant extent to those found in the Polish armorials of the time, which until today are the principal source for historians and heraldists. Consequently, it is hypothesized that tile stoves decorated with coats of arms had a role parallel to armorials, which were much less accessible at that time. Thus, the author claims that such stoves can be treated as 'ceramic armorials'. Their presence in late-mediaeval residences testifies to the needs and aspirations of the feudal elite, which was at that time transforming from knights into early modern gentry settled at their estates. (2 tables)

Keywords

EN

'CERAMIC ARMORIALS'.; STOVE TILES COLLECTION (UJAZD CASTLE)

Discipline

• ARCHAEOLOGY: ARCHAEOLOGY

• Publisher: Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Polish Academy of Sciences
• Journal: Kwartalnik Historii Kultury Materialnej
• Year: 2006
• Volume: 55
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 21-31
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Kajzer L.

• L. Kajzer, Uniwersytet Lódzki, Instytut Archeologii, ul. Pomorska 96, 91-402 Lódz, Poland

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

07PLAAAA03136475