Bowl

The Düsseldorf specimen is the showpiece among the finds of bowls and bowl fragments of this kind. It is noticeably larger than similar bowls, primarily found and probably made in southern France, as well as elsewhere in southern and central Europe. The size of the vessel, thinness of the sides and quality of the Glass, plus the free and uninhibited decorative use of threads are impressive proof of the high status of Glass art in the Middle Ages. For a long time, scholars had thought that after the fall of Rome, the production of colourless Glass in the West had not resumed until the 15th century and that north of the Alps in particular, people had been satisfied with green ‘forest Glass’. However, this bowl and several other pieces in the Düsseldorf collection prove that in the heyday of great cathedral windows, Glassmakers were also skilled in making luxury Glass vessels. (Dedo von Kerssenbrock-Krosigk)