The Portland Vase
- Audio guide stop: 542
- Gallery: Room 70
- Culture: Roman
- Made in: Rome (city) (probably)
- Date: 1-25 (circa); 1stC AD; 15 BC - 25 (Roberts et al 2010)
- Object type: amphora, vessel, cameo
- Materials: glass
- Museum number: 1945,0927.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is "The Portland Vase," a stunning Roman glass vessel crafted from translucent blue and opaque white glass. This intricate cameowork is carved as one single piece, showcasing the ancient technique of layering and cutting glass to create a sculpted surface of extraordinary detail.
Your eyes will be drawn to the graceful shape of the vessel—its cylindrical neck flares into a sloping shoulder and a rounded body. Delicate handles curve from the neck to the shoulder, and the design carved into the white glass tells a rich story, possibly linked to figures from Greek mythology like Peleus and Thetis.
Despite its age, the vase has endured through centuries of ownership, surviving a dramatic accident in the British Museum in 1845 when it was shattered and later expertly restored.
Once part of the famed Portland Collection in the 18th century, "The Portland Vase" remains one of the most celebrated examples of ancient glass artistry.
See it in person
The Portland Vase is on display in Room 70 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 542, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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