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Date : approx. between 100 and 50 B.C.
Material : Blown glass casted in a mold
Acquisition : Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan (1917)
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Etruscan and Roman Antiquities
Dishes
Vitrine : V01
Area related
Empire romain
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| Description |  |
The signature of the famous glassmaker Ennion is known from over thirty surviving pieces. Many other works are attributed to him on the basis of style. His process allowed the vessel and its decoration to be created at the same time. It also minimized the visibility of the lines caused by the seams in the mold and permitted the creation of multiple copies of the same vessel.
The location of Ennion's workshop is debated, in part because his work is found throughout the Roman Empire. Some scholars believe he worked in Sidon in modern Lebanon, while others assert that he worked in northern Italy. Though his name may have been Semitic in origin, he signed it in Greek, the language of the eastern Mediterranean, not Italy. The city of Sidon, where he may have worked, had all the raw material for glass-making and extensive trade connections.
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