Vadas József (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 12. (Budapest, 1992)
BIRÓNÉ SELY Katalin: Érmés tálka a fraknói Esterházy-kincstárból
three palmctlc leaves. The reverse is engraved witii the date 1340 and a crowned escutcheon, showing a standing griffin holding a sword (Illustration 5)—the heraldic animal of the Esterházy family. The date has nothing to do with either die handle or die bowl. Bowls decorated with coins, like die one described above, were only made from die sixteenth century onwards. The handle is roughly soldered onto die bowl, damaging one of the Macedón tetradrachms. The outside border of the bowl is decorated with a line of spots (Illustration 2), whereas die border of the handle shows primitive, rough grooves, attempting to imitate the line of spots. Therefore, the handle was made separately and was applied to die bowl later. The date 1340 cannot refer to die age of the bowl or to die handle; botii must have been manufactured much later. On examining die technique of manufacture, or radier the soldering of the coins into die bowl, I assume tiiat the maker of the dish must have possessed some ancient Roman coins from Thasos, and Macedonian protcs. He used diem as moulds for doublesided copies. The same is true for the Christ médaillon; it is especially die reverse that proves its being a cast copy. The original moulds were likely to have been used for several copies; for example, the same moulds were used for the Thasos tetradrachms (Cat. Nos 3, 5, 6, 10), for die Macedonian proles tetradrachms (Cat. Nos 4, 7, 9, 11), for the Vespasian (Cat. Nos 14, 15, 16, 18, 19) as well as for die Domitian denarii (Cat. Nos 20, 22, 24). The location of die coins is shown in thefigure; the numbering is identical to die catalogue numbers. The coins were fitted into die bowl while still hot, which slightly distorted the illustrations depicted on them. The original coins were probably worn through use, thus the copies were not sharp enough and fitting diem into die side of die bowl also added to the deformation of die illustrations. The smaller coins that were placed in die fiat, bottom part of the bowl did not have to follow the curved shape; on the other hand, the larger Thasos and Macedonian tetradrachms of die upper row had to be bent according to die shape and curve of die bowl. The Christ médaillon of die bottom was also inclined; it is convex from the inside and concave from the outside. The fitting and soldering was probably followed by re-engraving to improve die faded illustrations and letters. On several coins both the image and the letters were engraved around (Illustrations 6—10). The grooving that runs along the edge of die coins, enframing the illustration, was possibly made at die same time. The Christ médaillon is not grooved but it is enclosed with three lines of flutes on the inside of die bowl (Illustration 1). On die outside, it fits into die surface with a broad and plain rim. Finally, the inside and outside surfaces of die bowl were gilded. Unfortunately, die extent of die damage caused during die war is not measurable; dicrcforc it cannot be determined with certainty whether the engraving and gilding described above arc original or die result of restoration work. The fitting of die coins was not always successful; in some places tiicrc arc significant gaps between die edge of a coin and the side of die bowl, as in the cases of coin 2 and coin 15. I have uncovered the original coins used to make the castings. Therefore, I would like to introduce an analogy of the tetradrachms 1, 4, 7, 9 and 11 (Plate 1), found near Kisszedcrjes. An identical Macedonian tctradrachm served as a model for the coins of the bowl. An analogy for die Thasos tetradrachms of the first row —Cat. Nos 2, 3,
