Cup (Tumbler)

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Cup (Tumbler)
Frankish state; 6th/7th c.

This is an excellently preserved example of medieval European glassware when soda glass was being replaced by potassium glass with green and brown tints, known also as "woodland glass".

The glassware of this time fell short of the high quality of that produced during the Roman Empire and far less was made. The craftsmanship of this cup, so typical of its time and of the restricted range of tableware then produced, shows what a wealth of skill inherited from earlier generations the glassmakers had at their disposal. The cross suggests that it had some ecclesiastical function perhaps serving as a portable chalice.