Condition
Almost fully preserved; one lug is missing. Surface pitted.
Description
Translucent dark blue body; opaque white and yellow decoration. Horizontal rim-disk; cylindrical neck; rudimentary sloping shoulder; cylindrical body; flat bottom. Two opposing lugs on the body, near the shoulder.
A marvered yellow thread is wound around the rim-disk and spirals loosely three times around the neck, where it is joined by a marvered white thread that begins on the neck. These two threads spiral 10 times around the body to the bottom and are dragged up and down 10 times, forming a spaced feather pattern.
Comments and Comparanda
On core-formed alabastra of this period, see comments on cat. 22. For the classification of this particular alabastron, see Grose, David Frederick. 1989. Early Ancient Glass: Core-Formed, Rod-Formed, and Cast Vessels and Objects from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Roman Empire, 1600 B.C. to A.D. 50. New York: Hudson Hills Press., class III:C, alabastron form III:3: pp. 167–168, no. 164. Further examples include one in Freer Gallery (no. 09.435 = Grose, David Frederick. 1989. Early Ancient Glass: Core-Formed, Rod-Formed, and Cast Vessels and Objects from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Roman Empire, 1600 B.C. to A.D. 50. New York: Hudson Hills Press., fig. 88 left) and one from Samothrace (Dusenbery, Εlsbeth. 1967. “Ancient Glass from the Cemeteries of Samothrace.” Journal of Glass Studies 9: 34–49., pp. 37–38, no. 3, fig. 4).
Provenance
Louis de Clercq, French, 1836–1901; by 1974–1988, Erwin Oppenländer, 1901–1988 (Waiblingen, Germany), by inheritance to his son, Gert Oppenländer, 1988; 1988–2003, Gert Oppenländer (Waiblingen, Germany), sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 2003
Bibliography
von Saldern, Axel. 1974. Glassammlung Hentrich. Antike und Islam. Düsseldorf: Kunstmuseum., p. 71, no. 182; p. 72, plate no. 182.
Exhibitions
Molten Color: Glassmaking in Antiquity (Malibu, 2005–2006; 2007; 2009–2010)
Gläser der Antike: Sammlung Erwin Oppenländer (Hamburg and Cologne, 1974–1975)