Roman Glass

This glass was collected at Be'er Sheva, Israel circa 1960. During the Roman era Be'er Sheva served as a front-line defensive city against Nabatean attacks. Around 64-63 BC Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus made Be'er Sheva part of the Judea province.

Roman blown glass, which emerged around the 1st century BC, represented a revolutionary advancement in glassmaking, dramatically altering both the production and accessibility of glass objects. Prior to this technique, glass was primarily created using core-forming or casting methods, which were labor-intensive and limited in terms of scale and design. The invention of glassblowing allowed artisans to inflate molten glass into a bubble at the end of a hollow tube, or "blowpipe," enabling the creation of vessels with thin walls, intricate shapes, and in larger quantities. This innovation not only made glass more affordable but also transformed it from a luxury item to a common household material used for tableware, storage containers, lighting, and even windows. The technique spread rapidly across the Roman Empire, leading to a proliferation of glass workshops and a wide variety of glass products, from simple utilitarian items to elaborate decorative pieces.