**First Time At Auction**

Roman, Imperial Period, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE. A stunning free-blown glass vessel presenting a piriform body with a slightly dimpled base, a dramatically corsetted shoulder, a short neck that gently flares to a folded rim - all in rich, aubergine hues with nice translucency. A very special example boasting coveted deep aubergine coloring with a myriad of eggplant, plum, and violet notes - and remarkable translucency that conjures an almost, liquid-like appearance - as well as an attractive form. Size: 4.75" H (12.1 cm); 5.625" H (14.3 cm) on included custom stand.

For collectors of Roman glass, some colors are more prized than others. The brilliance of aubergine is certainly among these. In addition to this vessel's beautiful hue, its form is most elegant. The following quote poetically describes the artistic process of creating free-blown glass in ancient Rome, "First he heated the very point of the iron, then snatched from nearby a lump of bright glass and placed it skillfully within the hollow furnace. And the crystal as it tasted the heat of the fire was softened by the strokes of Hephaestus like . . .he blew in from his mouth a quick breath . . . .like a man essaying the most delightful art of the flute. The glass received the force of his breath and became swollen out around itself like a sphere before it. It would receive another onslaught of the divine breath, for often swinging it like an ox-herd his crook he would breath into . . ." ( P. Oxy. 50.3536, a third century poem on glass blowing - R.A. Coles, Oxyrhynchus Papyri 50 (1983), p. 58 from "Solid Liquid" catalogue, Fortuna Fine Arts, New York, 1999, p. 56)

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#135632

Areas of weathering film commensurate with age. Old label on base. Generally excellent.