Ancient Roman glass Lachrymatory(tear bottle) Size: 5×4cm Material: glass. Date: Roman, 1st/3rd century A.D. Origine: Roman empire. Condition: good condition Acquired: Tokyo, private collection Provenance:The Supplier warrants that is has obtained this lot in a legal manner.
Small glass bottles were often found in Greek and Roman tombs, early scholars romantically dubbed them lachrymatories or tear bottles. The idea that people were collecting tears in them seemed like folklore. fell in love with the poetical conceit as much as anyone else.
A cosmetic historian or a glass expert could have told a customer in 30 seconds those bottles are not lachrymatories ,that the scientific truth will be uncovered eventually (it already has), until then, each of us can choose our own belief.
Doubtless Rome'semergence as the dominant political, military, and economic power in theMediterranean world was a major factor in attracting skilled craftsmen to setup workshops in the city, but equally important was the fact that theestablishment of the Roman industry roughly coincided with the invention ofglassblowing.
This inventionrevolutionized ancient glass production, putting it on a par with the other majorindustries, such as that of pottery and metalwares (as 20.49.2-12). Likewise, glassblowing allowed craftsmen tomake a much greater variety of shapes than before. Combined with the inherent attractivenessof glass—it is nonporous, translucent (if not transparent), and odorless—thisadaptability encouraged people to change their tastes and habits, so that, forexample, glass drinking cups rapidly supplanted pottery equivalents.
During the reign of Rome’s firstemperor, Augustus (27 B.C.-A.D. 14), as several well-established industriessuch as pottery- and textile-making were being expanded, the craft ofglassmaking was adopted from the East, turned into an industry, and adapted toRoman taste. By the mid-first century A.D.glass rivaled pottery in the domestic marketplace.
It was used fortableware and storage containers to hold everything from preserved fish to fineperfumes. Glass featured strongly in the Romandaily routine, from the early morning, when maids would apply perfumed lotionsto their mistress in preparation for her social rounds, to the late afternoon,when slaves would bring platters of food.
bowls of fruit, and jugs of wine—allof glass—to the supper table. And there was a place for glass even in Romanfunerary ritual, because it was custom to include all manner of domesticitems among the grave furnishings, to add comfort to the afterlife.
传说英国维多利亚时代,以及美国南北战争时期,泪壶再次复活欧美,复活后的泪壶外形酷似香水瓶,或者说和香水瓶没有区别。收集“失去所爱之人的悲伤”,“当其中泪水蒸发殆尽,才是服丧终结之时”的故事很美,不幸之处在于,根据科学检测,酷似香水瓶的泪壶中的成分是香水和软膏,而不是眼泪。如同欧美好事者所言,既然要赚钱,就很难把一个好故事编的圆满完美(It’s hard to keep a good story down when there’s money to be made)。
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