Inscribed Head-Shaped Flask

Place of OriginProbably Syro-Palestine, possibly Cyprus

DateLate 2nd to early 3rd century CE

DimensionsH: 8 1/16 in. (20.5 cm); Rim Diam: 1 1/8 in. (2.9 cm); Diam: 3 in. (7.6 cm)

MediumMedium thin glass. Blown in a two-part mold.

ClassificationGlass

Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1923.414

Not on View

DescriptionFlask of medium-thin transparent glass with a moderate greenish-yellow tint. The tall tubular neck and projecting roll are free-blown, while the shoulder collar and head-shaped body were blown into a two-part vertical mold that also formed the slightly concave oval base. A continuous mold seam runs through the hair and across the underside, and the crisp relief preserves a pontil mark of about 1.3 cm. The rim is rounded and thickened in the flame, the neck tapers with a constriction near its base, and the hollow projecting roll may result from overblowing. The body takes the form of a youthful, beardless head—possibly male or female—with a narrow oval face, high forehead, almond-shaped eyes with recessed pupils, a proportioned nose, and parted lips. An ivy wreath with berries and heart-shaped leaves encircles the head. Below the chin is a Greek inscription, hyperekhei (“surpasses, excels”), with a second, now illegible, inscription on the back.

Label TextThis head-shaped flask shows the remarkable ambition of Roman glassworkers, who combined free-blowing and mold-blowing to create vividly modeled vessels. The youthful, beardless head wears an ivy wreath, a symbol linked to Dionysos and the wider world of performance and festivity. At the chin is a Greek inscription, hyperekhei, meaning “surpasses” or “excels,” a word that may have carried amuletic or celebratory force. A second, now illegible, inscription once appeared on the back. The tall neck and projecting roll reflect technical developments that first appear in second-century contexts, such as a flask from ancient Tomis in Romania, and become more common in Syro-Palestinian workshops in the third century. Comparable head flasks are known from Cyprus and other eastern Mediterranean sites, underscoring the widespread appeal of such figural vessels.Published ReferencesSambon, Arthur, “Les Verres antiques,” Le Musée: Revue d’art mensuelle, vol. III, 1906, p. 499-500, fig. 52 [likely the same vessel].

G. M. A. Richter, "The Curtis Collection of Ancient Glass," Art in America 2, 1914, 83, fig. 11.

Donald B. Harden, "Romano-Syrian Glasses with Mould-blown Inscriptions," Journal of Roman Studies 25, 1935, 183, pl. XXIII.

Dominick Labino, Visual Art in Glass, Dubuque, Iowa, 1968, 21, fig. 9, 22.

David F. Grose, "Ancient Glass," TMA Museum News, 1978, 78, 82, fig. 19.

Stern, E. Marianne, Roman Mold-blown Glass: the First through Sixth Centuries, "L'Erma" di Bretschneider in Association with the Toledo Museum of Art, Rome, Italy, 1995, cat. no. 147, p. 228, color plate 24, p. 61.