Roman, Imperial period, ca. 4th century CE. An incredibly well-preserved, free-blown shallow glass dish with an applied disc foot. The foot has an almost braided appearance, in contrast to the smooth lines of the body, which is steep-sided. The interior of the body curves inward slightly, forming a very gentle dip in the center of the plate. Vessels like this one could have been used during any course of a Roman meal, but it would have been ideal for laying out appetizers (the course called "gustum") like cold meat or small fish around the rim. The underhanging rib underneath the rim mirrors the style of large pottery platters in use at the time. Average Roman citizens used glass vessels like this one for every course of their evening meal, known as "cena." Size: 8.5" W x 2.15" H (21.6 cm x 5.5 cm)

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#139611

Intact with a very faint rainbow iridescence. Light encrustation on surface, notably around the rim. Broken pontil mark on the underside which indicates that the vessel was free-blown.