Modern research show that the British Museum ’s most famous artifact — the Portland Vase — was manufactured by a different technique than the one traditionally assumed by historians and archaeologists .
For centuries , expert in antiquities have enounce that the Portland Vase , along with otherRoman cameo glassartifacts , were manufactured by the ancient Romans using a blown glass technique . Australian National University scientist and expert glassmaker Richard Whiteley is now challenging this longheld assumption , reason that many cameo Methedrine pieces were build with a insensate - processing technique now known as “ pate de verre . ”
For those who are into this stuff , that ’s a turn of a shock . Roman cameo glassfrom this geological era , in addition to being extremely rare ( only 15 other Roman Catholic cameo glass vases and brass are known to be ) , has been hugely influential . The Portland Vase ( craft sometime between 30 BC to 50 AD ) is credibly the best known piece of popish cameo drinking glass , inspiring many glass craftsman and manufacturers from the other eighteenth century to the present day . These ornate glass pieces included vases , big rampart plaques , and small jewelry particular . historiographer and archeologist mistrust that the cameo glass was made by a process requiring blown glass , but Whiteley say he ’s uncovered grounds show this is n’t the case .
“ It ’s not about proving people incorrect , ” enounce Whiteley in a statement . “ It ’s about correcting the historical record and reviving and doctor a technique lose for over 2,000 year . ”
He come in to this conclusion after examine some Roman cameo glass from the ANU Classics section with a reckon tomography scanner . This allowed him to see , for the first time , the configuration , direction , and composition of air bubble trapped between the blue and white layer of Roman glass .
“ I retrieve the second I saw it , I said : Oh my god , this is over-the-top , because I also saw cold workings marks in the surface which were inconsistent with the presumptuousness that it was blown , ” Whiteley said . “ I carve and frame glass with my hands , and have done for decade . The marks I see were discrepant with what I see in my oeuvre . ”
Specifically , Whiteley ’s squad saw a bubble configuration with the glass that ’s develop by a pressing and turning gesture . He hypothesize that cold granulated glass was backpack into a mold , and then a blob of liquified blue ice was introduce and pressed against the mould , heating the white granules from behind .
“ You just would not get a house of cards that sizing and directly - shaped from blowing , ” he said . “ The most striking matter about it , is not its size of it and its two-dimensionality , but we found a section where the blue looking glass has mixed with the granulated white specks of deoxyephedrine . ”
Whiteley admits he ’s not the first soul to make this claim . Back in the 1990s , German artist Rosemarie Lierke reach a similar stopping point , but her writings were n’t accepted on news report of lack of grounds . Whiteley will present his new evidence at a historical glassware conference at the British Museum next workweek , and his supporting paper has yet to look in a compeer - review journal . Until then , we ’ll have to temper our expectations about this finding .
Whiteley hop-skip his new theory will pull in enough attention and backing for a research team to revivify the Portland Vase using the pate de verre method acting . In his opinion , that would fall the debate once and for all .
We reached out to several experts to get their opinions on this inquiry , and will update this post should we find out back .
[ Australian National University ]
Ancient romeArchaeologyHistoryScience
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