A GREEK ROCK CRYSTAL JAR WITH A GOLD AND GLASS LID

HELLENISTIC PERIOD, CIRCA 2ND-1ST CENTURY B.C.

Details

A GREEK ROCK CRYSTAL JAR WITH A GOLD AND GLASS LID
HELLENISTIC PERIOD, CIRCA 2ND-1ST CENTURY B.C.
Globular in form, on a splayed ring foot, the underside recessed and centered by a descending conical projection, the short neck with a wide, flat, overhanging rim, the interior well hollowed, the lid of opaque red glass, cylindrical in form with a projecting flange, the upper surface adorned with a gold disk and a ring handle joined by a central pin, the disk embossed with a rosette, its rim with a band of filigree rope framed by beaded wire, the handle formed of beaded wire with plain wire edges, a beaded ring below
2 3/8 in. (6 cm.) high

Provenance

C. Milev, Munich, early 1960s-1984.
Private Collection, Germany, 1984-2001.

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Lot Essay

According to Picón, et al. (Art of the Classical World in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, p. 483), "In Hellenistic and Roman times, vessels made in semiprecious stone were much sought after as symbols of wealth and sophistication. Used as diplomatic gifts or treasured as heirlooms, many of them found their way into royal tombs or imperial collections, both in antiquity and later." The most common materials for such vessels were banded agate and rock crystal. Highly unusual here is the survival of the lid, made of opaque red glass and embellished with gold. For a gold lid with similar filigree ornament, see the example at the Allen Art Museum of Oberlin College, no. 28 in Bühler, Antike Gefässe aus Edelsteinen.

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