Roman and Post-Roman Glass Vessels Depicted in Asian Wall Paintings

Abstract

There has been very little systematic research on the glass vessels depicted in wall paintings. About the Buddhist wall paintings in the area of Eastern Asia, however, there are the studies by An Jiayao on those of Dunhuang(1) and by D. Blair on those in the Golden Hall of Horyuji.(2) And in the last few years the present writer also has had the opportunity to conduct research at Dunhuang on glass vessels depicted in the wall paintings there.(3) The result of this research shows that glass vessels are depicted in over 80 places (50 caves), and the vessels are of a multiplicity of shapes: cup (type I and II), dish, bowl (type I, II, III, IIIa, IV), deep bowl, bottle (type I, II, III) and stemmed cup (type I, II, III), etc. The wall paintings were painted from the Sui to the Yuan period, and it is possible to construct a chronology of glass vessels depicted in the wall based on a classification of the vessels' shape, form of decoration, whether or not it has a plant in it, and the date of the wall painting itself.