Alabastron (Container for Scented Oil)
6th-4th century BCE
Medium
Glass, core-formed technique
Dimensions
13.3 × 3.8 × 3.8 cm (5 1/4 × 1 1/2 × 1 1/2 in.)
Classification
glass
Department
Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
67491
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Initially affordable only among the wealthy, glass was used in ancient Rome as containers for oils, perfume, and tablewares. In the ancient Mediterranean world, scented oils, usually olive oil based, were generally used rather than alcohol-based perfumes. This vessel is called an “alabastron” because objects of this shape were originally made of alabaster. Core-formed glass was made by dipping a removable core that gives the vessel its shape into a molten glass mixture. The pattern was created b...