Rod-formed glass jar, Syria, 300-500 AD
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Links to other views:⇒ Larger Viewif scripting is off, click the ⇒ instead. Links to others of type JarAlabaster unguent jar, Dyn. 18Alabaster unguent vase, Dyn. 18 Alabaster unguent vase, Old Kingdom Iridescent glass jar, Roman, 1-100 AD ? Massive alabaster libation vessel, 3000 BC |
This rod-formed jar was made of a very dark green glass, appearing black. Golden iridescence suggests incorrectly that the piece was gilded. Above a disk-shaped base knob, the body was tooled to produce a slightly swirled ribbed pattern. The neck was crimped, and the resulting rim was tooled in the opposite direction to the body ribbing. Two coil handles were applied from shoulder to rim. Probably Syrian, fourth or fifth century. “A curious group of vessels is made of very thick glass that was not blown, but tooled on a metal rod or mandril… Two shapes dominate: tall tubular jars and small bulbous jars with a ribbed or smooth body. Preferred colors are ‘black’… they could hold contents. One rod-formed tube in the Toledo Museum of Arts contains a dark gray powdery substance that has not been analyzed but looks like kohl (black eye paint)… If the rod formed tubes and jars were for kohl, they could have held only a small, symbolic amount. Perhaps the vessels were made to be funerary gifts… The rod-formed vessels are commonly associated with Syria, but their dates are disputed” (Stern 2001:144). Parallels: Ernesto Wolf Collection, No 80. “Rod-formed bulbous jar, Height: 5.05 cm, greatest diameter: 3.1 cm, Weight 46 g” (Stern 2001:188). Bibliography (for this item)Dayagi-Mendels, Michal1989 Perfumes and Cosmetics in the Ancient World. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel. (36-58) Stern, E. Marianne 2001 Roman, Byzantine, and Early Medieval Glass; 10 BCE-700 CE; Ernesto Wolf Collection. Hatje Cantz Publishers, Ostfildern-Ruit, Germany. (144,188) |
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