Hi. At the Tucson show I saw “Roman glass” at several venues. The
vendors had consistant that the glass was ancient Roman
glass excavated in Afganistan, presumably left over from the
crusades? Does anyone out there know anything about this material?
Thanks.
Peg
Bare Bones Jewerly
Friends of mine who are very familiar with this material and who saw
the same Tucson vendors that you did said it was mis-represented and
not true Roman Glass at all, just glass that had been roughed up to
have that “ancient” appearance. I have not seen it in person,
therefore I won’t weigh in on this issue personally.
BBR - Sandi Graves
Stormcloud Trading Co (Beadstorm)
Saint Paul, Minnesota
651-645-0343
Dear Peg,
I will disclose to you some facts:
Although the Romans did much to spread glassmaking technology, with
its conquests, trade relations, road building, and effective
political and economical administration, the Roman Empire created
the conditions for the flourishing of glassworks across western
Europe and the Mediterranean. During the reign of the emperor
Augustus, glass objects began to appear throughout Italy, in France,
Germany and Switzerland. Roman glass has even been found as far
afield as China, shipped there along the silk routes. It could be
plausible to find some glass beads in Afganistan but no way it
arrived there during the crusades.
Adrian