Glass inlays were created using a selection of metal oxides to colour the glass. The craftsmen were diligent and precise in their use of oxides, in order to ensure that the correct colours and shades were achieved. Archaeological evidence suggests that glass making was almost monopolized by the ruling elite. This meant that many glass inlays were owned by the Pharaohs, or were gifted to favoured officials by the royals. It appears that glass was almost regarded as a precious stone, probably due to the high level of care and attention required to make it and to form it into beautiful designs.
Glass inlays, in the shape of deities, animals, body parts and generic figures, would have been used to decorate wooden shrines, in which statuettes of gods and goddesses were housed. Such wooden shrines would have been placed in temples, and would have appeared richly inlaid with figural, hieroglyphic, and decorative glass elements
