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Dropper Flask with Snake-thread Decoration

Date
late 2nd–3rd century CE
Material
Glass
possibly associated with
Asia
possibly associated with
Asia
possibly associated with
Asia
Classification
Containers, glassware
Collection
Ancient Art
Current Location
On View, Gallery 259
Dimensions
4 5/8 x 3 1/8 in. (11.7 x 8 cm)
diameter of rim: 2 11/16 in. (6.9 cm)
diameter of base: 2 1/8 in. (5.4 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Kurt W. Bachstitz
Rights
Public Domain
Object Number
21:1924
NOTES
Despite the beauty of this container, it was the contents inside that were truly valuable. Luxurious oils and sweet-smelling unguents were coveted and used by both men and women in antiquity. The ancient Greeks even used olive oil as a soap by spreading it on their skin and scraping it off with a metal tool called a strigil.
Friedrich L. von Gans (1833-1920), Frankfurt am Main, Germany

- 1924
Galerie Bachstitz, The Hague, Netherlands, acquired from Friedrich L. von Gans [1]

1924 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, given by Mr. Kurt W. Bachstitz [2]


Notes:
[1] Identified as coming from the von Gans collection in "Sammlungen der Galerie Bachstitz" [Berlin: Albert Frisch vol. 2, 1921, p. 59, cat. no. 165, pl. 69].

[2] Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum March 27, 1924.

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