Roman Glass: Reflections of Everyday Life [Paperback]

Stuart J. Fleming (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1997

This lavishly illustrated book places glass in its social setting within the Roman household. The volume was written to accompany the traveling exhibition Roman Glass: Reflections on Cultural Change. Through a series of vignettes, the author tells the story of the development of the glass industry in the Roman Empire and the role of glass in the daily routines of the ancient Romans.

During the reign of Rome's first emperor, Augustus (27 B.C.-A.D. 14), as several well-established industries such as pottery- and textile-making were being expanded, the craft of glassmaking was adopted from the East, turned into an industry, and adapted to Roman taste. By the mid-first century A.D. glass rivaled pottery in the domestic marketplace. It was used for tableware and storage containers to hold everything from preserved fish to fine perfumes. Glass featured strongly in the Roman daily routine, from the early morning, when maids would apply perfumed lotions to their mistress in preparation for her social rounds, to the late afternoon, when slaves would bring platters of food, bowls of fruit, and jugs of wine—all of glass—to the supper table. And there was a place for glass even in Roman funerary ritual, because it was custom to include all manner of domestic items among the grave furnishings, to add comfort to the afterlife.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stuart Fleming was the scientific director of the Applied Science Center for Archaeology at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

Product Details

• Paperback: 76 pages
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology; illustrated edition edition (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0924171510
• ISBN-13: 978-0924171512
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #670,139 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not enough about the glass, March 29, 2000

By 

sgkr (New Hampton, NH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Roman Glass: Reflections of Everyday Life (Paperback)

An interesting book, but not entirely what I expected. While the discussion of Roman glass in relation to daily Roman life was interesting, I was hoping for more about the UPenn exhibition that was the source of much of the material. Fleming's more recent book, Roman Glass: Reflections on Cultural Change, might be more the exhibition catalog that I was looking for. If you're new to Roman glass, however, this would probably be a good starting point.