Glass Craftsman's Art I. The Reproduction of the Portland Vase

JSGT 1924 V08 T085-T092

The subject of this short paper is identified with what is, without doubt, the most famous piece of glass which students of glass-and we may include earthenware-know. Since the discovery of the original vase in the sarcophagus of the Emperor Severus near Rome in the seventeenth century it has been considered an example of the finest craftsmanship by both of these industries. This ancient vase, which is carefully preserved in the gem room of the British Museum, is made of glass, but up to the time when Josiah Wedgwood borrowed it from the Duke of Port, land for the purpose of imitating it in his jasper ware, it was thought to be of stone or earthenware. The error was excusable, as the dull appearance of the vase from age obscured the translucency or transparency which one naturally looks for in glass.

John Northwood