Page 49 - Lazar, Irena. 2022. Pogled skozi steklo / A Look Through the Glass. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem. Libri universitatis hereditati, 1
P. 49
ure 18: Photo of the oil lamp from Spodnje Škofije upper part two small shelves or working surfac- roman oil la mp from slovenia depicting a glass fur nace 49
near Koper, site Križišče, grave 3, Regional Museum es are shown, the righthand one rests on a leg or
Koper (photo: Tomaž Lauko). stand. The right one can be interpreted as the
Slika 18: Fotografija oljenke iz Spodnjih Škofij pri Kopru, working surface or slab on which the glassblow-
najdišče Križišče, grob 3, Pokrajinski muzej Koper er rolled a glass post before blowing and marv-
(foto: Tomaž Lauko). ered the glass during his work above the furnace.
Undulating lines incised in the upper left part
as the melting pot for glass. Possibly this sche- above the furnace indicate the heat emanating
matic sketch draws attention to the working from the furnace.
port’s small door or fireguard (perhaps no more
than a pot shard, as suggested by Marianne The right-hand figure sits on a low stool be-
Stern (2004, 83) which closed the working port side the furnace, dressed in a short tunic, the
while work was in progress, so as to maintain the folds of which are emphasized with deep in-
temperature inside the furnace and at the same cisions. He is barefoot, as can be seen by the
time protect the glassblower while he was work- short-slanting incisions at the front of his foot.
ing at the furnace.2 On the left and right in the On the floor by his foot lie three objects, which
can probably be interpreted as raw glass and/or
2 At some medieval furnaces remains of pottery frames waste material formed during his work. The per-
have been excavated; according to the excavator they ser- son’s head is raised, his lips pushed forward and
ved to change the size of the working port (information ready to blow into the pipe which he holds in-
Marianne E. Stern; Steppuhn 2001, 40, Abb. 4). They can clined in front of him. This is elliptically broad-
be compared to pottery frames discovered at Avenches ened at the end and draws attention to the ob-
(Amrein 2001, 88, pl. 20: 74). long, a rather big object that the glass worker
is blowing. Considering the proportions of the
glassblower and his tool, the blowpipe is less
than a metre long and looks quite robust. We
can also observe that something is attached to
the underside of the pipe. If the blowpipe is not
made of metal, but of clay, as Marianne Stern
suggests (1999, 446), the long narrow strip tied
to it may have served to reinforce the pipe while
the glassblower blew a large, heavy object (pers.
com. Marianne E. Stern). The round hole below
the pipe is the oil lamp’ air vent.
The figure on the left side of the furnace,
probably the master craftsman’s assistant is less
precisely drawn. He seems to be squatting next
to the furnace. He has a short object in his hands,
placed upright. It is not a blowpipe. Could it be
a “pointed” bellows of the vertical type depicted
on several Roman monuments depicting a smith
at work? (Weisgerber and Roden 1985, 6–10, figs.
10–3). In that case, the triangular shelf seen on
the left side of the furnace probably represents
the support for the bellows (suggested by E. M.
Stern; Weisgerber and Roden 1985, 9). Howev-
er, according to the last experiments on Roman
glass blowing by Mark Taylor and David Hill,
near Koper, site Križišče, grave 3, Regional Museum es are shown, the righthand one rests on a leg or
Koper (photo: Tomaž Lauko). stand. The right one can be interpreted as the
Slika 18: Fotografija oljenke iz Spodnjih Škofij pri Kopru, working surface or slab on which the glassblow-
najdišče Križišče, grob 3, Pokrajinski muzej Koper er rolled a glass post before blowing and marv-
(foto: Tomaž Lauko). ered the glass during his work above the furnace.
Undulating lines incised in the upper left part
as the melting pot for glass. Possibly this sche- above the furnace indicate the heat emanating
matic sketch draws attention to the working from the furnace.
port’s small door or fireguard (perhaps no more
than a pot shard, as suggested by Marianne The right-hand figure sits on a low stool be-
Stern (2004, 83) which closed the working port side the furnace, dressed in a short tunic, the
while work was in progress, so as to maintain the folds of which are emphasized with deep in-
temperature inside the furnace and at the same cisions. He is barefoot, as can be seen by the
time protect the glassblower while he was work- short-slanting incisions at the front of his foot.
ing at the furnace.2 On the left and right in the On the floor by his foot lie three objects, which
can probably be interpreted as raw glass and/or
2 At some medieval furnaces remains of pottery frames waste material formed during his work. The per-
have been excavated; according to the excavator they ser- son’s head is raised, his lips pushed forward and
ved to change the size of the working port (information ready to blow into the pipe which he holds in-
Marianne E. Stern; Steppuhn 2001, 40, Abb. 4). They can clined in front of him. This is elliptically broad-
be compared to pottery frames discovered at Avenches ened at the end and draws attention to the ob-
(Amrein 2001, 88, pl. 20: 74). long, a rather big object that the glass worker
is blowing. Considering the proportions of the
glassblower and his tool, the blowpipe is less
than a metre long and looks quite robust. We
can also observe that something is attached to
the underside of the pipe. If the blowpipe is not
made of metal, but of clay, as Marianne Stern
suggests (1999, 446), the long narrow strip tied
to it may have served to reinforce the pipe while
the glassblower blew a large, heavy object (pers.
com. Marianne E. Stern). The round hole below
the pipe is the oil lamp’ air vent.
The figure on the left side of the furnace,
probably the master craftsman’s assistant is less
precisely drawn. He seems to be squatting next
to the furnace. He has a short object in his hands,
placed upright. It is not a blowpipe. Could it be
a “pointed” bellows of the vertical type depicted
on several Roman monuments depicting a smith
at work? (Weisgerber and Roden 1985, 6–10, figs.
10–3). In that case, the triangular shelf seen on
the left side of the furnace probably represents
the support for the bellows (suggested by E. M.
Stern; Weisgerber and Roden 1985, 9). Howev-
er, according to the last experiments on Roman
glass blowing by Mark Taylor and David Hill,
