A Roman globular unguents jar in translucent glass with a wide flat rim, short neck and bulbous body. The jar stands on a flattened base, indented towards the centre.
Roman Eastern Empire: About 3rd Century AD.
Condition: Complete and intact, with attractive silvery iridescence on one side; a few light accretions.
Maximum width 6 cms (2.4 ins).
Provenance: The R.K. collection of ancient glass, UK. purchased 2006 from a London dealership.
Compare with item 288: Roman Glass in the Corning Museum of Glass; volume one: David Whitehouse
Glass was produced in large quanities in the later Roman Empire. It was used to produce items of everyday use, for keeping expensive unguents and cosmetic oils which would have been gathered from all corners of the expansive Roman Empire.