Perfume flask

Images(2)

Artist/Maker Unknown artist, Roman (Ancient)

Datec. 4th-5th century CE

MediumBlown glass with trailing

DimensionsOverall: 4 5/8 × 2 3/4 × 1 7/8 in. (11.7 × 7 × 4.8 cm) Diameter (rim): 1 1/4 in. (3.2 cm) Diameter (base): 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm)

Credit LineBequest of Edward S. Burgess, Class of 1879, H1904

Object number1929.116

On view

DescriptionIn addition to nearly sixty Greek and Etruscan vases (see cat. nos. 3, 4), the collection of Edward S. Burgess—bequeathed to the College in 1928—also includes a number of terracotta figurines and nearly seventy pieces of ancient Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic glass. According to Burgess’s sister, Julia, he had written a two-volume scholarly manuscript on the subject of ancient glass that remained unpublished at his death. The objects shown here are a representative sampling of the variety of glass vessels contained in the Burgess Collection. Although glass production originated in northwestern Iran around 2500 BCE, there was little evolution in technique until about 50 BCE, when glassblowing was invented near Jerusalem. For over two millennia, glass vessels had been made in molds through a laborious casting process. By contrast, glassblowers situate a blob of molten glass at the end of a hollow tube and blow into it to inflate the viscous substance into a bubble, then manipulate it with various tools; when the glass cools, it hardens, maintaining its shape. Soon after this development, artisans began blowing glass into two- and four-part molds, creating multifaceted vessels with patterns and designs impressed on their surfaces, such as the jug illustrated above (center). Glassblowing revolutionized the production of glass vessels, allowing for much greater production in less time. Prices fell, and glass began to replace ceramics for household goods in many parts of the Roman Empire, especially in present-day Egypt, Israel, and Syria. Smaller examples, such as most of those seen here, likely held perfume, ointment, or cosmetics. Although economic instability and the localization of craft and trade after the fall of the Roman empire in 476 CE caused glassmaking to decline, it continued on a lesser scale and was further refined in Islamic territories into the early modern period. (SOURCE: Alcauskas, INNOVATIVE APPROACHES, HONORED TRADITIONS, 2017)

Collections

Additional Details

Alternate Titles Perfume flask
Aubergene long-neck flask

Exhibition History 2017
Clinton, NY (Ruth and Elmer Wellin Museum of Art, Hamilton College). "Innovative Approaches, Honored Traditions: The Ruth and Elmer Wellin Museum of Art at Five Years, Highlights from the Permanent Collection," September 9 - December 10, 2017 (cat. no. 15, illus.);

2005
Clinton, NY (Fred L. Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College). "Hamilton Collects, A Century of Curiosities: The Story of the Hamilton College Collection," September 29 - December 30, 2005 (unnumbered cat.);

1988
Clinton, NY (Fred L. Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College). "Ancient Glass: The Hamilton College Collection," March 5 - April 24, 1988 (cat. no. 59, illus., cover).

Provenance 1929: Hamilton College, by bequest of Edward S. Burgess.

Markings Label: masking tape adhesive label with "102.69" in pencil on bottom of bottle.

Published References Katherine D. Alcauskas, INNOVATIVE APPROACHES, HONORED TRADITIONS: THE RUTH AND ELMER WELLIN MUSEUM OF ART AT FIVE YEARS, HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE PERMANENT COLLECTION (Clinton, NY: Wellin Museum of Art, 2017), p. 70;

ANCIENT GLASS FROM THE HAMILTON COLLEGE COLLECTION (exh. cat. Clinton, Emerson Gallery, 1988), 14, illus. cover.

Signature Not signed.

Inscribed None noted.