During the Sasanian period (224–651), glass was used as tableware, especially for drinking vessels and bottles, alongside silver-gilt objects (see AC1992.152.82). Honeycomb-patterned faceted glass, like this pear-shaped bottle, is among the most common types to have survived. Some examples, as here, echo the shapes of contemporaneous silver-gilt vessels. The green glass would have been blown in an open mold; after cooling, the hexagonal facets covering the surface of the thick-walled bottle would have been cut and polished. The technique survived into the Islamic period in Iran (see M.88.129.160).
Glass bottles such as this must have been considered luxury ware for the elite. Pouring wine from it would have been a multisensory experience, involving taste, aroma, sight, and touch; the last would have involved not only the intriguing texture of the faceted surface but also the hefty feel of the bottle, which is weighted toward the bottom.
2024
