Ble. The blue and also the black bead may belong to the class of non-significant relics (objects that have come in direct speak to with a saint or blessed) or had been brought to Cracow as souvenirs from the Holy Land. The absenceMinerals 2021, 11,21 ofof official documents confirming these facts hinders the dating from the components or the determination of their origin or relation to a specific saint. The blue bead represents a mysterious object. Its identification is hard due to the absence of a hole. Surely, it was a decorative element. It could serve as a fragment of ceremonial dress, jewellery or vessel. It could belong both towards the sacred and the profane sphere. The black bead is much less mysterious; it might be a rosary bead. Their glass material may indicate their Italian origins. Venetian glass played a especially critical role in the European market. Venetian glass beads, buttons and several kinds of jewellery, for instance rings, earrings, bracelets and crosses, enjoyed substantial popularity. Glass beads have been colourless, “crystal” or coloured. Rosaries were also created from glass beads [60]. However, Phenylacetylglutamine custom synthesis thinking about mediaeval tradition, a non-practical function for the beads cannot be ruled out. These items could have had a symbolic or even magical meaning. Single glass beads put into graves could have played the part that amulets did in the Middle Ages [41,61]. five. Conclusions This study includes findings on 3 particularly interesting objects discovered inside the Scala Santa (Holy Stairs) positioned in the crypt under the Piarist Church in Cracow (Poland), which was originally created as a chapel of your Holy Stairs, a distinctive historical object in planet terms. They are: a metal, framed, transparent reliquary cross containing a particle of your Correct Cross and two opaque beads–a decorated, undrilled blue bead as well as a drilled black bead. In spite on the limitations resulting in the necessity to utilize only non-invasive and non-destructive approaches (scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM DS), Raman microspectroscopy (RS) and X-ray diffractometry (XRPD)) to study the chemical composition and structure of these artefacts, the study carried out offered an excellent deal of information on the material from which the objects identified Toceranib phosphate Epigenetics within the Holy Stairs had been created. The inability to figure out the bulk composition of the glasses tends to make it impossible to precisely decide the probable web site of bead manufacture. Nonetheless, the presented material characterization with the artefacts, in spite of its imperfections (the study restricted to some particular methods) permits a discussion of these issues, extends the information from the objects placed within the Holy Stairs and considers them worthy of being placed there. The transparent reliquary cross containing a particle in the Correct Cross was discovered to become produced of rock crystal and framed with an alloy of gold, silver and copper. Thinking of the reputation of reliquary crosses made from rock crystal in the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, the Piarist object may very well be dated for the beginnings of the use in the Holy Stairs chapel that was consecrated in 1733. Analyses indicate that the beads are created of glass. Considering the supply of the flux, the glass might be divided into two principal forms: forest plant-ash potash ime glass (the blue bead) and plant-ash soda ime glass (the black bead). Thus, the beads had been produced after the eighth century (introduction of plant ash as a source of alkaline flux) and at the most current, aro.
