Roman aubergine-purple glass aryballos oil flask

R31

£1,000.00

Available

An aubergine-purple glass aryballos vessel with a squat globular body, disc rim and two arched handles.

The aryballos shape was first used by the Greeks and later adopted by the Romans to store perfumed oils in bath-houses. The disc-shaped rim reduced spillage of the precious oils and a bronze chain was often suspended from the handles so that the vase could be carried or stored safely in slippery conditions.

Culture:
Roman, 3rd or 4th Century AD

Size:
10 x 8.9 cms

Condition:
Minor losses to the trailing line on the top of the handles otherwise intact

Provenance
Ex. deceased estate, Maidenhead, Berkshire, UK; acquired 1960’s-1970’s. Possibly acquired with other antiquities purchased in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv in May, 1970.

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