Glass decorated with glass thread

Glass objects of this kind are known as unguentaria or balsamaria, and were used as containers for cosmetics. Spindly sticks or small scoops would be used to retrieve the required item. The shape of these bottles was very susceptible to fashion. They were made using a glass-blowing technique, and decorated with overlays of glass thread. Glass vessels of this kind are products of the Syrian-Palestinian glass industry. Glass thread decorations were already being applied in the first century AD.