Ancient Roman Dimpled Glass Flask

£650.00

An ancient Roman vessel, blown in clear transparent glass. The flask rests on a raised basal ring and presents a piriform body leading to a cylindrical flared neck, thickening on the rim. Five large dimples decorate the flask’s body, adding movement to the composition and reflecting the excellent Roman glass-blowing technique. The surface is covered with areas of iridescence and some earthly encrustations.

Date: 2nd-4th century AD
Provenance: French collection, 1960s-early 2000s.From an important Paris gallery, France.
Condition: excellent condition, earthly encrustations and iridescence

SOLD

SKU: AG-35 Category: Tags: , ,

Glass production evolved during the Roman Empire with the introduction of glassblowing which allowed for a great variety of different shapes and styles to be constructed. The technique allowed for easier manipulation of the glass into more intricate designs with an assortment of functions. Glassblowing also allowed for a quicker paced production, the hot glass would be blown into a mould and then removed whilst still hot so that the glass maker could still work on it.

Glass was often the preferred material for storing expensive oils, perfumes, and medicines because it was not porous. The small body and mouth allowed the user carefully to pour and control the amount of liquid dispensed. By the 1st century AD, the technique of glass-blowing had revolutionised the art of glass-making. The new technique allowed craftsmen to use smaller amounts of glass for each vessel and obtain much thinner walls, so enabling the creation of small medicine, incense, and perfume containers in new forms. These small glass bottles are found frequently at Hellenistic and Roman sites, especially in cemeteries, and the liquids which filled them would have been gathered from all corners of the expansive Roman Empire. 

To find out more about Roman glass please see our relevant blog post: Ancient Roman Glass and Collecting Roman Glass.

Weight 56.3 g
Dimensions L 10 x H 16 cm
Culture

Glass

Region

You may also like…