Roman greenish glass grapes flask

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Lot: 138

Roman greenish glass grapes flask

"Roman greenish glass grape vase, 300 AD". Glass was a favorite item for the Romans who supplied it through trade with the Egyptians and Phoenicians. But since the beginning of the Empire they manufactured it in the metropolis and outside it, giving it the same applications as the Egyptians and Phoenicians and perfecting the shapes of their vessels that are more varied and elegant. Towards the end of the Hellenistic period, glass definitively supplanted terracotta as the raw material for the manufacture of containers in all areas of daily life. At the beginning of Roman times, the invention and rapid spread of the torch, and the conception of furnaces that resist ever higher temperatures, will be considered as an important technical revolution in antiquity. With a versatility unlike any other material known in Roman times, the abundant availability, lightness and ease of use of glass, allowed the imitation of a wide range of other materials, especially precious metals. On the other hand, the ancients certainly knew that glass is a chemically neutral substance, which makes it particularly suitable for the storage of cosmetics or pharmaceuticals, as well as food and liquids. Hardly is a Roman burial discovered that does not contain colorless or greenish glass bottles, covered with iridescence by the action of humidity and air. These small bottles, always narrow in shape, are often called teardrops and ointments by collectors, but they were only used to contain oils or perfumes in the tombs, not to deposit tears in them. The Romans also perfected the art of producing figure reliefs on glass vessels by the addition of another layer of enamel, or glass of a different color, together with the shaping and chiseling or engraving of it, so that the outer surface of such Vessels have all the appearances of a cameo.

Good condition.

Provenance: Purchased at auction from the Archaeological Center, Israel in 2006. 14.5cm. height

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Title

Roman greenish glass grape vase, 300 AD

Country

Rome

Measures

14.5cm. height

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