Gold-Glass Wall Tile with Cross

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Gold-Glass Wall Tile with Cross

Place of OriginLikely Syria, reportedly found near Aleppo

Dateabout 9th-12th century

DimensionsH: 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm); W: 3 7/16 in. (8.7 cm)

MediumGold leaf between two layers of glass

ClassificationGlass

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1959.127D

Not on View

DescriptionSquare "sandwich" plaque with a thick (0.67 cm) green lower layer and thin (0.03 cm) grayish-yellow upper layer. Gold leaf forms a Type 1 cruciform design: a diagonal square with four pairs of triangles centering on a small square. Edges are chipped; a reddish-brown backing makes negative-space glass appear black.

Published ReferencesRiefstahl, Rudolf M., “Ancient and Near Eastern Glass,” Museum News, vol. 4, no. 2, Spring 1961, p. 42.

Philippe, Joseph, Le monde byzantin dans l’histoire de la verrerie, Bologna, 1970, p. 54, fig. 26.

Gorin‑Rosen, Yael, “Byzantine Gold Glass from Excavations in the Holy Land,” Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 57, 2015, pp. 102, 116 (Table 1, Nos. 13–17).