Badorf ceramics

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Badorfer ceramic is the term for an already in Frankish produced time ceramics . The name Badorf ceramics , which was created and used from then on, is now a category of the numerous products of Rheinischer ceramics . As a commodity, this designation was combined with the products of Badorf potters , which were manufactured and coveted over a long period of time and exported to many European countries.

Pottery from Badorf, found in Steingasse

History of origin

Archaeological investigations and findings show significant occurrences of pottery for the Brühl area from the Merovingian period to the 15th century . The location of the settlements on the edge of the foothills offered the pottery trade ideal conditions in several respects. The streams that existed here provided him with water, the required layers of clay and sand at shallow depths were easily degradable, and the raw material wood, obtained from the forests that still existed at that time, provided fuel for the kilns . The Cologne sales and transshipment point, not far away on the Rhine , was primarily used for long-distance trade and was easily accessible via the preserved Roman roads .

The earliest traces of ceramics production can be found on the eastern slope of the Ville in the area of ​​today's village Waldorf for the 6th to 7th centuries and after a spatial relocation of the workshops to the north, in the 8th century in Walberberg and Eckdorf. In Walberberg, for example, four pottery kilns from the Carolingian era were documented on a building plot . Also at this time there were pottery shops in Kierberg (originated from a former Fronhof "Merreche", a Franconian royal estate ), Pingsdorf (see also Pingsdorfer Keramik ) and Badorf. The term Badorf ceramics came about for the pottery produced there between the 8th and 10th centuries .

Raw material and craft

Badorf large ceramics
Brühl Ceramics Museum. Fragment of a Franconian amphora in relief, Badorfer Ware, 8. – 10. century

The clay material that can be reached in the opencast mine , the composition of which gives today's research information about the origin of the ceramics, was excavated in so-called “clay pits” and brought to the workplaces. The clay was then soaked in, slurried, washed out, mixed with sand and finally, for the most part, vigorously beaten through with the feet. This thorough kneading, carried out before the subsequent shaping on the potter 's wheel, was necessary in order to free the mass of impurities such as smaller stones, leaves, roots and air bubbles that would otherwise have flaked off during firing. The ceramics production, the traces of which were found in many places in the form of salvaged remains of the workshops, false fires and other artefacts , were proven by archaeological finds .

Firing techniques

The evaluation of recent excavations resulted in many new insights into the development of medieval and early modern furnace technology. They have been clearly summarized by Andreas Heege and are essentially presented as follows.

The early medieval ceramic ovens, in which Badorf ceramics from the 8th to 10th centuries were fired, followed the tradition of the Roman standing ovens. The combustion chamber above the combustion chamber was separated by a perforated barn (fireclay plate with holes). Ovens of this type, which are also known as Carolingian ring ovens, were found in Walberberg, Eckdorf and Pingsdorf. In the High Middle Ages (between the 10th and 11th centuries), the standing ovens developed into the lying ovens with a series of firing and combustion chambers. They were separated from each other by a step and / or a fire grate made of pot and clay pillars. However, there are many different types of ovens which show that medieval potters experimented a lot and innovatively in the construction of their ovens. Because by optimizing the draft in the furnace, the firing temperature and thus the density, i.e. the quality of the ceramic, could be improved.

Goods and trade

The Badorfer Art pottery known from this period was of particularly high importance. Overall, it is a light-toned, smooth product that could be decorated with ribbon-like overlays, roller stamps and wave patterns. Magnificent, egg-shaped amphorae relief bands that reached a height of 70 cm are characteristic. Relief ribbon amphoras were large storage vessels without a standing surface, the walls of which (about 5–6 mm) were decorated with decorative ribbons that contributed to the stability of the large vessel. They were not only made in Badorf, but also in Eckdorf, Geildorf and Pingsdorf. In addition, there were spherical pots made of gray ware of various sizes, which served as cooking or storage vessels throughout the Middle Ages. Badorf ceramics in all the forms it produced were a coveted commodity and were not only marketed regionally, but also exported to distant European countries across the Rhine. Mainly large vessels like the already mentioned relief ribbon amphoras came into the trade, which were not negotiated for their own sake but as transport containers for other goods such as wine and vegetable oils .

Relocation and abandonment of ceramic production

After Archbishop Siegfried von Westerburg received the town charter in 1285, the potters from the surrounding area settled more and more in Brühl. They set up their production facilities primarily along today's Uhlstrasse and Tiergartenstrasse, Bönningerstrasse, and on the grounds of the Jahnshof. Production in Brühl came to a standstill at the beginning of the 16th century, probably due to the emergence of larger ceramic productions in Cologne, Siegburg and Frechen . The foreign products, some of which are now also emerging in the new Renaissance style , overtook Brühler Ware's former leading position.

Today's presentations on ceramic history

From the remains uncovered in the city itself comes a stoneware furnace from the late 13th century, which is considered the most completely preserved pottery furnace in the Rhineland. His recovered fire grate was placed in a shopping arcade at the end of Uhlstrasse.

On the origin and evolution of pottery that with a large number offers exhibits appointed the domestic ceramic Brühl Ceramics Museum to its visitors a comprehensive insight.

  • Find location Brühl, Franziskanerhof

  • Earth position of the furnace

  • Salvaged fire grate

See also

literature

  • Andreas Heege: Pottery Furnaces in the Rhineland , pp. 193–197. In: Thomas Otten u. a. (Ed.): Find stories. Archeology in North Rhine-Westphalia (writings on the preservation of monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia; Vol. 9). von Zabern, Mainz 2010 (catalog of the national exhibition of the same name, Römisch-Germanisches Museum, March 19 to November 14, 2010).
  • Heinz Günter Horn , Hansgerd Hellenkemper (eds.), Harald Koschik: In: Location North Rhine-Westphalia. Millions of years of history (writings on the preservation of monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia; vol. 5). von Zabern, Cologne 2000, ISBN 3-8053-2698-X (catalog of the national exhibition of the same name , Roman-Germanic Museum, March 17 to August 27, 2000).
  • Günter Krüger: Life pictures from seven centuries. City of Brühl 1285–1985 (Writings on the history of Brühl ; Vol. 6). Brühl 1985 (catalog of the exhibition of the same name, Brühl Franciscan Monastery, May 1 to September 29, 1985).
  • Ulrike Müssemeier: Badorf ceramics. In: Hansgerd Hellenkemper, Heinz Günter Horn, Harald Koschik and Bendix Trier (eds.): A country makes history. Archeology in North Rhine-Westphalia (writings on the preservation of monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia; Vol. 3). von Zabern, Mainz 1995, ISBN 3-8053-1801-4 .
  • Gisela Reineking von Bock, Antonius Jürgens, Marianne Jürgens: Brühler ceramics of the Middle Ages. Preliminary stage for Rhenish pottery art. City of Brühl, Brühl 1985, ISBN 978-3-926076-13-7

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Harald Koschik: Pottery, soil monument preservation in the Rhineland. In: Heinz Günter Horn , Hansgerd Hellenkemper (Hrsg.), Harald Koschik: In: Findort Nordrhein-Westfalen Millions of years of history : Writings on the preservation of monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia, Volume 5, Cologne 2000, ISBN 3-8053-2698-X , p 29
  2. ^ Günter Krüger: Life pictures from seven centuries. Brühl 1985, pp. 18-12.
  3. ↑ a b Andreas Heege: Pottery kilns in the Rhineland. In: Find stories - Archeology in North Rhine-Westphalia. Accompanying book for the state exhibition 2010. Writings on the preservation of monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia, Vol. 9., 2010, pp. 193–197.
  4. ^ Günter Krüger: Life pictures from seven centuries. Brühl 1985, pp. 18-12.
  5. ^ Information from the city of Brühl