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2008.18.2.18, Roman Basket-Handled Double Unguentarium

Catalogue Entry 
Photograph of a glass unguentarium with two tall cylinders with rounded bottoms and a handle that arches above and across the cylinders, from the side against a neutral gray background.

From the Catalogue of Ancient Glass in the University of Colorado Museum

Gift of H. Medill Sarkisian and Justine Sarkisian Rodriguez (1979)
(2008)
Height: 17.0 cm
Diameter (max.): 4.8 cm
Roman, 4th to 5th century C.E.

Classification: Harden Fabric 9

Description: High basket handle, rounded and attached to either side of the folded-in rims of twin tubular bodies. Double chambers formed either by pinching single open vessel or folding over. Bodies of adjoined tubes narrow slightly at center and appear wedged or pinched at base. Yellow with greenish tint. Crack at base of handle, apparently glued. Blown. 

Comment: The double unguentarium occurs almost exclusively in Syria and Palestine in the 4th and 5th centuries C.E. A 4th century C.E. example of this type of handle comes from a tomb at Beit Fajjar in Palestine (Husseini 1935, pl. 85, no. 3). Other examples are Ayalon 1994, fig. 5; Stern 2001, no. 179; and Whitehouse 2001, no. 748. More elaborate versions are numerous, including even quadruple unguentaria.

One specimen from Palestine seems to have been used for eye paint and it is probable this vessel served a similar purpose.

Discussion

Yellowish glass like this could have been created by a glassmaker who mixed in a small amount of manganese with the other ingredients. Manganese caused glass to turn yellow, and in larger amounts, purple. Green-tinted glass was the result of a very small percentage of iron in the glass. Ancient Roman glassmakers knew how to make green, blue, purple, and yellow glass by adding certain metals, but may not have been able to control the saturation of color (1).

Photograph of a glass unguentarium with two tall cylinders with rounded bottoms and a handle that arches above and across the cylinders, angled toward viewer so interior of cylinders are partially visible, against neutral gray background.
A double unguentarium like this one is fairly easy to date because the shape is distinct. Glassmakers in only made these during the 4th and 5th centuries C.E. The style of the handle and the way it was attached to the vessel can also help in narrowing down the date. This type of handle is similar to others that were made in the 4th century C.E. in Palestine.

Cosmetics were an important part of a wealthy Roman's daily routine (2). would have held powders or paints which the women and men would use to beautify themselves. Slaves would apply make-up, scents, and jewelry for their masters twice a day: once in the morning, then again after her trip to the bathhouse, to prepare for the evening meal (3).

Footnotes

  1. Donald B. Harden, Roman Glass from Karanis (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1936): 6-9.
  2. Kelly Olson, "Cosmetics in Roman Antiquity: Substance, Remedy, Poison," The Classical World Vol. 102 No. 3 (Spring 2009): 291-310.
  3. Stuart J. Fleming, Roman Glass: Reflections of Everyday Life (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Museum, 1997): 28-31.

References

  • Ayalon, E. “A Roman-Byzantine Mausoleum at Khirbet Sabiya, Kefar Sava,” ‘Aپdz 25 (1994): 27-39.
  • Husseini, S. A. S. “A Fourth Century A.D. Tomb at Beit Fajjar,” Quarterly of the Department of Antiquities in Palestine 4 (1935): 175-177.
  • Stern, E. M. Roman, Byzantine, and Early Medieval Glass: 10 BCE-700 CE: The Ernesto Wolf Collection. Ostfildern-Ruit: Hatje Cantz, 2001.
  • Whitehouse, D. Roman Glass in the Corning Museum of Glass, v. 2. Corning, NY: Corning Museum of Glass, 2001.