Early Imperial, Neronian or early Flavian

Glᴀss gladiator cup, Glᴀss, Roman

Translucent greenish yellow.

Everted, unworked, knocked-off rim; slightly irregular and oval-shaped body with vertical sides; convex undercurve with low base ring; flat but uneven bottom. A continuous mold seam runs from rim, down sides (concealed by palm fronds), and across bottom.

On body, two friezes run around the sides; the upper and narrower frieze contains four names, widely spaced; the lower frieze, flanked above and below by a horizontal ridge, is broader and comprises two scenes divided by vertical palm fronds, each containing two pairs of gladiators in varying stances with four names inserted between them at the top of the scenes.

ipernity: Roman Glᴀss Gladiator Cup in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July  2007 - by LaurieAnnie

Broken and repaired, but with some losses to rim and body; a few pinprick and larger bubbles, and a few gritty impurities; slight dulling and pitting, and faint iridescent weathering.

Ars Vitraria: Glᴀss in The Metropolitan Museum of Art - The Metropolitan  Museum of Art

The scene around the cup depicts four pairs of gladiators fighting. Each man is identified by name in the Latin inscription above him. Some of the names match those of known gladiators who became famous in games held in Rome during the Julio-Claudian period, suggesting that such cups may have been made as souvenirs.

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