beaker

Object NameBeaker with Dolphins

Made FromGlass

Date275-325

Place MadeGermany, Rhineland

Techniqueblown, applied snake thread decoration

SizeOverall H: 20.4 cm; Rim Diam: 7.4 cm

Accession Number82.1.1

Curatorial Area(s)

Ancient

Exhibitions

The Art of Glass: Masterpieces from The Corning Museum of Glass

Treasures from The Corning Museum of Glass

Glass of the Caesars

On ViewAncient Gallery

Interpretive Notes

Web Text

This drinking vessel was decorated with sinuous snake-thread trails of molten glass patterned to form the bodies of leaping dolphins.

Physical DescriptionColorless glass with a yellow greenish tinge, slightly pitted and iridescent surface; blown with applied snake thread decoration. Rounded, thickened rim flares out sharply from long cylindrical body tapering to a rounded bottom with short solid cylindrical stem and flared foot; body is divided into two registers by two thin trails applied beneath the rim, two in the center and one near the bottom; the top register has three dolphins with full bodies trailing up to V-shaped tails, the tail formed from a pincered or tooled and folded trail, a single trail, tooled with ribbed decoration forms the stylized dorsal fin, mouth and curls under to create a C-shaped pelvic fin; each dolphin is divided from the other by a wide horizontally trail pulled off to the right at its base and is overlapped by an elaborate scalloped trail which is pulled up to the right to frame the bottom and right side of each figure; the lower register has three water lilies or mussels, a V-shaped trail has been tooled to create a wide body from which a central column emerges; the pistil and stamen is surrounded by a thin inverted triangular element with a zigzag top, the right side is a double trail broken away at the end; each is framed by a motif similar to that in the upper register, the base trail forms an elaborate "stem" then trails down to form the elaborate fill ornament below and to the right of the water lily; solid cylindrical stem, applied flared foot with pontil mark.
Provenance

Source Karl Loffler - 1982-08-03