Cameo Glass Vessel Fragment with Dionysiac Scene
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for Cameo Glass Vessel Fragment with Dionysiac Scene
Cameo Glass Vessel Fragment with Dionysiac Scene
Place of OriginItaly, probably Rome
Date1st century CE
DimensionsL: 1 1/4 in. (3.2 cm); W: 2 in. (5.1 cm)
MediumCameo glass
ClassificationGlass
Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number
1923.1536
Not on View
DescriptionThis rim fragment from a cameo glass vessel is made of opaque white layered over deep cobalt blue. The relief depicts a bearded satyr with a wreath, shown in a hunched posture with his head turned downward. He extends his bent right arm and holds a thyrsus in his left hand. A canopy of drooping tree branches fills the space above. The arrangement suggests the presence of a now-missing figure—possibly Dionysos—beneath the canopy. The cameo technique involved layering colored glasses and carving back the surface to reveal contrasting designs. This fragment likely belonged to a larger composition featuring Dionysiac imagery.
Label TextThis cameo glass rim fragment, likely made in Rome during the 1st century CE, shows a satyr beneath a heavy tree canopy. Finely cut in white glass over cobalt blue, the satyr stands in a hunched pose, holding a thyrsus—a staff associated with the god Dionysos. Above him, the branches of a tree droop protectively, suggesting a sacred or ritual setting. This small fragment would have once formed part of a larger vessel decorated with mythological scenes. The cameo technique involved fusing layers of colored glass and then cutting away the surface to reveal contrasting designs.
1st century CE
Mid- to late 4th century CE
Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5, about 2400 BCE.
1st century CE
1st century CE
2nd-1st century B.C.E.
1st-2nd century CE
1st century CE
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