Is This A Lamp, Or Is This A Cup? Glass vessels Found In Israeli Excavations

The many families who visited the National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel during the summer were impressed by our glass displays filled with glass finds discovered throughout the country.

One of the unique items in the display is a beautiful conical glass vessel, made of colorless translucent glass, decorated with blue glass drops. This vessel, found years ago during an excavation in the Western Galilee, dates to the 4th century CE, the late Roman period and the beginning of the Byzantine period in the land.

Researchers conclude that the vessels had two different uses – as oil lamps and as drinking cups.
Evidence for both uses can be found in ancient art. In the mosaic, at the ancient synagogue in Hammat Tiberias, you can see a seven branched menorah made of stone with conical glass lamps at the tops of the branches. In a wall painting found in a house in Ostia, the port city of Rome, you can see men sitting around a table drinking from similar cups.

Dr. Yael Gorin-Rosen, head of the Glass Department at the Israel Antiquities Authority, explains how these cups were made: “Glass artists shaped the cups by blowing hot glass into a conical shape and then added the blue glass drops to the vessel while it was still hot.” Dr. Gorin-Rosen adds that “the cups were intentionally made of colorless glass to enhance the light from the lamps and to see the color of the wine in the cup – a clear advantage over ceramic cups, which demonstrates the thought glassblowers devoted to this before approaching the design work.”

So while summer is still with us, pour yourself a cool glass of drink and come see for yourself our glass display at the National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel – link for tour registration in the first comment!

Photo: Zvika Tzuk, Israel Nature and Parks Authority and Medad Socholovsky, State Treasures.