DOI Artikel:
Gawlikowska, Krystyna; Assa'd, Khaled: The collection of glass vessels in the Museum of Palmyra
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.26419#0017
Studia Palmyreńskie IX, 1994
5
THE COLLECTION OF GLASS VESSELS IN THE
MUSEUM OF PALMYRA
by
KRYSTYNA GAWLIKOWSKA AND KHALED AS‘AD *
INTRODUCTION
The Museum of Palmyra owns a small collection of ancient glass, on display in two showcases close
to the Centauromachy mosaic set on a wall. The vases are mostly complete and present a wide range of
forms, ffom tiny alabastra to quite large tableware. Several photographs of more impressive pieces have
already been published in exhibition catalogues * 1 and a few can be found in excavation reports 2, but
most will be presented here for the first time. As this group of vessels contains only local finds (with the
exception of three vessels found in Tayyibeh, ancient Oriza, out in the desert NE of Palmyra), and nearly
all known finds from the site other than broken fragments, it was felt that a detailed presentation would
be usefiil for comparison with other, published collections from Syria and from the Near East in general.
As it is usual with well-preserved glass, most of the objects come from tombs. Some were found in
excavations of hypogea in the Valley of Tombs or the SE Necropolis; they belong to the period when
these cemeteries remained in use, i.e. in principle before the end of the 3rd century. Most pieces,
however, come from a late cemetery under the modern town. The circumstances of their recovery
sometimes make their archaeological context difficult to appreciate.
* Director of Antiquities and Museums in Palmyra.
1 As’ad - Ruprechtsberger, Palmyra, p. 137-143, fig. 5-8; Syrie - Mémoire, nos. 257-262, p. 310-313; Ruprechtsberger,
Aposteln, nos. 9-10, 12, p. 397-399.
2 K. Michalowski, Palmyre. Fouilles polonaises 1959, Warszawa 1960, fig. 19, p. 24; p. 199-200, fig. 222-223; Palmyre.
Fouilles polonaises 1960, Warszawa 1962, p. 213-214, fig. 244; R. Fellmann, Le sanctuaire de Baalshamîn à Palmyre V. Die
Grabanlage, Rome 1970, p. 93-95. Two pieces (Reg. nos. 7957/78 and 7957/79), though exhibited, are not included in this
catalogue, waiting for the pubhcation of the Nabu Temple; some gilded figured fragments were also found there, cf. S. Abdul-Hak,
Annales des Journées Intemationales du Verre (Damas 1964), Liège 1964, p. 33-36.
5
THE COLLECTION OF GLASS VESSELS IN THE
MUSEUM OF PALMYRA
by
KRYSTYNA GAWLIKOWSKA AND KHALED AS‘AD *
INTRODUCTION
The Museum of Palmyra owns a small collection of ancient glass, on display in two showcases close
to the Centauromachy mosaic set on a wall. The vases are mostly complete and present a wide range of
forms, ffom tiny alabastra to quite large tableware. Several photographs of more impressive pieces have
already been published in exhibition catalogues * 1 and a few can be found in excavation reports 2, but
most will be presented here for the first time. As this group of vessels contains only local finds (with the
exception of three vessels found in Tayyibeh, ancient Oriza, out in the desert NE of Palmyra), and nearly
all known finds from the site other than broken fragments, it was felt that a detailed presentation would
be usefiil for comparison with other, published collections from Syria and from the Near East in general.
As it is usual with well-preserved glass, most of the objects come from tombs. Some were found in
excavations of hypogea in the Valley of Tombs or the SE Necropolis; they belong to the period when
these cemeteries remained in use, i.e. in principle before the end of the 3rd century. Most pieces,
however, come from a late cemetery under the modern town. The circumstances of their recovery
sometimes make their archaeological context difficult to appreciate.
* Director of Antiquities and Museums in Palmyra.
1 As’ad - Ruprechtsberger, Palmyra, p. 137-143, fig. 5-8; Syrie - Mémoire, nos. 257-262, p. 310-313; Ruprechtsberger,
Aposteln, nos. 9-10, 12, p. 397-399.
2 K. Michalowski, Palmyre. Fouilles polonaises 1959, Warszawa 1960, fig. 19, p. 24; p. 199-200, fig. 222-223; Palmyre.
Fouilles polonaises 1960, Warszawa 1962, p. 213-214, fig. 244; R. Fellmann, Le sanctuaire de Baalshamîn à Palmyre V. Die
Grabanlage, Rome 1970, p. 93-95. Two pieces (Reg. nos. 7957/78 and 7957/79), though exhibited, are not included in this
catalogue, waiting for the pubhcation of the Nabu Temple; some gilded figured fragments were also found there, cf. S. Abdul-Hak,
Annales des Journées Intemationales du Verre (Damas 1964), Liège 1964, p. 33-36.