Glass and Perfume

Perfumes and precious liquids were generally luxury items that people owned in small amounts due to the expense. As such, the containers for these perfumes and precious liquids were often small and could range from plain clay bottles to beautiful ornate glass or alabaster containers. In this display are a variety of glass containers that would have been used to hold perfumes and precious liquids. On the bottom shelf are examples of plain clay bottles. Alongside these are examples of some of the types of materials used to make perfumes, which were generally oil-based. To give fragrance, ancient people used either plant-based materials (such as spices, resins, or flowers) or animal-based materials (such as musk or other glandular oils). Finally, once again driving home how precious these materials were, the small weight is displayed to show the small amounts that were generally bought by a customer.

Artifacts on Display: