Mosaic glass inlay

late 1st century BCE–1st century CE
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 166
Opaque white ground; decoration in opaque white, yellow, and blue, partly translucent purple and blue green, and colorless glass appearing blue.
Thin, rectangular plaque, cut from a mosaic composite bar, with flat upper and lower faces, and vertical straight sides, with rounded corners; design extends uniformly through the thickness of the plaque.
Front half of crocodile, facing left; front leg in blue; underside of body and jaw in small blue green canes outlined with colorless glass, and bottom of jaw outlined in purple; teeth in white; upper body in purple with yellow scales.
Broken across one end, with rear half of crocodile missing, and some chips along top edge; all surfaces ground and polished; pitting of surface bubbles.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mosaic glass inlay
  • Period: Late Hellenistic or Early Imperial
  • Date: late 1st century BCE–1st century CE
  • Culture: Roman, probably Egyptian
  • Medium: Glass
  • Dimensions: Overall: 7/16 x 1 in. (1.1 x 2.6 cm)
  • Classification: Glass
  • Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1942
  • Object Number: 42.11.41
  • Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art

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