2012.1.102: Quadruple Unguentarium (cosmetic bottle)

Identification and Creation

Object Number

2012.1.102

Title

Quadruple Unguentarium (cosmetic bottle)

Classification

Vessels

Work Type

vessel

Date

4th-6th century

Period

Roman Imperial period, Late, to Early Byzantine

Culture

Roman

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/57459

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Pale blue-green glass

Technique

Free-blown glass

Dimensions

H. 13.9 x Dia. 7.5 cm (5 1/2 x 2 15/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History

[Bernheimer's Antique Arts, Cambridge, MA (by 1965)], sold; to the Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection, Department of the Classics, Harvard University (1965-2012), transfer; to the Harvard Art Museums, 2012.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Transfer from the Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection, Department of the Classics, Harvard University

Accession Year

2012

Object Number

2012.1.102

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

Four-chambered cosmetic tube (unguentarium) of translucent pale blue-green glass. The handles are separately attached. A thin trail decoration was applied around the exterior of the unguentarium after the chambers were formed. Further handle-like decoration rising from the rims of the four chambers is broken off.

Commentary

LIVE LIKE A ROMAN: DAILY LIFE OBJECT COLLECTION

The Romans borrowed from the Hellenistic tradition of casting glass vessels. This technique was time-consuming and produced glass vessels with very thick walls, requiring much raw material. In the first century BCE, the Romans developed the method of glass-blowing, which revolutionized the industry. Glass could then be manufactured on a larger scale, and as a result, it was no longer a rare material.

This vessel is a blown glass cosmetic tube, known as an unguentarium because of its long, slender shape. These were often used for cosmetic purposes, like holding perfumes or oils.

[Jessica Pesce 8/19/2010]

Publication History

• John Crawford, Sidney Goldstein, George M. A. Hanfmann, John Kroll, Judith Lerner, Miranda Marvin, Charlotte Moore, and Duane Roller, Objects of Ancient Daily Life. A Catalogue of the Alice Corinne McDaniel Collection Belonging to the Department of the Classics, Harvard University, ed. Jane Waldbaum, Department of the Classics (unpublished manuscript, 1970), Gl18, p. 121-22 [S. M. Goldstein]

Subjects and Contexts

• Roman Domestic Art

Verification Level