Millefiori glass vessels are quite unusual and were highly desirable objects commissioned and produced for the households of the fortunate citizens. The word millefiori, or “thousand flowers,” is a modern term used by Italian Renaissance writers which appeared in the mid 19th century and described the production of glass vessels composed of colored tesserae fused together with other glass cut. Such vessels were produce in the Augustan and Tiberian periods, and their distribution spread as far as Egypt and other regions of the eastern Mediterranean world.
The production of millefiori glass is a complicated procedure which requires a considerable experience from the glassmaker. In a first step the glassmaker produced the polychrome glass rods that he then cut into small slices. These small discs were heated and placed next to each other in a mold. The fusion of the discs of different colors pressed into the mold provides the decorative effect like the one we can see on our cup. In order to obtain the fine and glossy surface the cup is polished carefully.
