Replica of an Ancient Roman Glass millefiori bowl

Probable reproduction of a Roman millefiori bowl, a type of decorative glass whose technique directly recalls the workshops of the Hellenistic and early Roman periods, especially between the 1st century BCE and the 1st century CE.

Container with a shallow hemispherical profile, whose shape suggests a bowl or patera for both utilitarian and ornamental use.

The most striking feature is its surface entirely covered by a complex glass pattern, in which the tones predominate:

* Golden yellows
* Opaque whites
* Warm hues that evoke honey, amber and filtered sunlight

These colors are not painted, but integrated into the glass mass, the result of the millefiori technique (literally, “thousand flowers”).

The decoration is achieved through multicolor glass canes (straws) prepared in advance. These canes are cut into transverse sections and arranged in mosaic and fused into a single surface.

In this piece, the motifs do not form defined flowers, but an organic and almost cellular lattice, with irregular, branched shapes that recall natural structures such as corals, lichens or biological tissues.

This suggests a more abstract variant within millefiori, possibly inspired by Roman models where the visual effect predominated over figuration.
The edge of the bowl is well defined, slightly lighter, which frames the composition as if it were a luminous disk.

Historical-artistic context: Millefiori was a highly valued technique in the Roman world, inherited from the Alexandrian workshops. These pieces were luxury objects, associated with urban elites and frequently imitations of hardstone work or mosaic.

Private Spanish collection in the 80s (reproduction).