Glass vessel in the form of a pomegranate

Mycenean, about 1400-1200 BC
Found in Tomb 66 at Enkomi, Cyprus

This pomegranate vessel is one of several found on the island of Cyprus. With their shorter necks and pointed leaves they differ from contemporary Egyptian versions, and are in fact closer in form to the real pomegranate fruit. They belong to a series of vessels that must have been made in Levantine glasshouses, in Syria or Cyprus, as counterparts to the Egyptian series which were more common at this time (the Late Bronze Age). Since most of this particular form have been found on Cyprus, it seems likely that they were made there.

Other core-formed vessels made in the Levant and not part of the Egyptian repertoire include jugs with a spout at the lip, jugs on a tall base, and tubular bottles crowned by pomegranates.

Core-formed glass vessels were not produced in Greece at this time, though glass ornaments of bright blue or occasionally green glass with flat backs and suspension holes have been found. These occur in many different forms, the most common being rosettes and spirals. They were evidently designed for personal ornament, often strung together to form necklaces or diadems, and some may have been sewn onto garments.

H. Tait (ed.), Five thousand years of glass-1, 2nd paperback edition (London, The British Museum Press, 1999)

D.B. Harden, Catalogue of Greek and Roman-1 (London, The British Museum Press, 1981)

D.B. Harden and others, The British Museum: masterpiec (London, 1968)