Flask with Green Cameo Decoration

9th–10th century
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Animals—a popular theme during the Byzantine era—continued to appear in early Islamic art. Hares represented plenty and the hunt, a popular activity of the elite for centuries.
Cameo glass, widespread throughout the eastern Mediterranean in Roman times, was revived during the Islamic period. Here, the harelike figure is carved from a patch of green glass applied over the translucent glass of the vessel’s body.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Flask with Green Cameo Decoration
  • Date: 9th–10th century
  • Geography: Made in Probably Iran
  • Medium: Translucent glass with green glass overlays, relief cut, incised
  • Dimensions: H: 6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm); diam: 3 3/8 in. (8.5 cm)
  • Classification: Glass
  • Credit Line: The British Museum, London (1967,1211.1)
  • Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters