Mosaic Glass Fragments from a Vessel

Mosaic Glass Fragments from a Vessel

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mosaic glass was one of the most highly valued types of luxury glass in the ancient world. It takes its name from the way in which vessels are formed from a mosaic of rods (monochrome segments of glass) and cones (slender rods bundled and fused to form polychrome designs). Between 1907 and 1909, the Metropolitan Museum excavated at Ain et-Turba in the Kharga Oasis. Excavators found large numbers of glass fragments, many of high quality and expensive manufacture.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mosaic Glass Fragments from a VesselMosaic Glass Fragments from a VesselMosaic Glass Fragments from a VesselMosaic Glass Fragments from a VesselMosaic Glass Fragments from a Vessel

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.