Ancient Roman Glass
The genuine Roman Glass that you find set in the jewelry is about 2000 years old and was found on archaeological sites in Israel. Some of the glass found was gathered at the location of a glass factory of ancient times. It originates from the time when Israel was part of the Roman Empire. In the middle of the first century B.C., Rome was fanning out to embrace East and West in a military/political control that would provide the foundation for expansive trade networks of cultural exchange. The blossoming of this internationalism is reflected in the glass industry of the Roman Empire. Rome asserted its control over the two dominant glass-making centers of the late first millennium (Syro-Palestine and Egypt) in 62 and 30 B.C., respectively. Simultaneously, the raw territories of the West (where glass had no history) were being brought within their influence. Thus today ancient Roman glass has widely excavated. The shiny, iridescent finish that you may notice on some pieces of genuine Roman glass is called Patina. It results from minerals that occur in the earth, that are in contact with the ancient glass over the centuries.
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