A Roman purple glass jug, ca. 4th century AD

A jug with a bell-shaped body and clover lip, a green trailed handle and a green collar in the middle of the cylindrical neck.

12.4 cm (h)
 
Intact
 
Provenance:
Ex C.A. Hessing Collection, coll. no.57
Ex Anonymous sale; Bonhams, London, 22 September 1998, lot 226

Published:
Sheppard & Cooper Ltd, Glass: The Eighth Wonder of the Ancient World, London, 1994, p.14, no.75.

Roman glass was used primarily for the production of vessels. It developed from Hellenistic technical traditions, initially concentrating on the production of intensely coloured cast glass vessels. However, during the 1st century AD the industry underwent rapid technical growth that saw the introduction of glass blowing and the dominance of colourless or ‘aqua’ glasses. By the end of the century large scale manufacturing resulted in the establishment of glass as a commonly available material in the Roman world, including technically very difficult specialized types of luxury glass.