MUSIC: [upbeat Roman music, danceable, party crowd]

NARRATOR: You have been invited to a small, private dinner party in ancient Rome, a *convivium*, reserved only for elite men and women. As you enter your host's home, you are led into a lavish dining room and discover that this evening isn't just about dining. Rather, it is a feast for the senses. Chatter and music fill the room as diners are entertained by live performance. A heavenly aroma of food and wine wafts towards your nose. The room is filled with artwork---mosaic floors, frescoed walls, and decorative sculpture---but what catches your eye is this extravagant glass wine cup.

Banquets were a way for hosts to dazzle their guests, especially with their luxurious wares, and this cup is no exception. Milky white figures radiate against a translucent, sapphire background in a technique known as cameo glass. Cameos were typically gems, carved out of naturally layered stones such as agate. These carved gems were rare, and highly prized, as was cameo glass. A cup like this was certainly reserved for special occasions.

To make this wine cup, it's likely a Roman glass artist poured molten glass into a hollow mold, carved into the shape of the vessel you see here; the sloping body, circular horned handles and foot were all one piece, though *this* base is a modern addition. The artist would have started with the outer, white layer then poured a second internal layer of blue glass. After a slow cooling process, the outer white layer was partially cut away and polished to reveal the dark blue background. The white areas that remain were carefully carved to create a complex relief of lively figures, including Bacchus, god of wine, who the Greeks knew as Dionysos.

MUSIC: [lyre]

Partially draped, Bacchus sits under the shade of a tree at right. This god is often accompanied by satyrs---creatures who are half-man half-beast. One serenades him at the center of the scene with a harp-like instrument called a lyre. The satyr looks over at a woman who sips wine from a shallow bowl. On the opposite side, Bacchus's wife, Ariadne, reclines on a rocky seat---her hand resting behind her head---while a servant dutifully attends to her. Not so coincidentally, the scenes on this cup match that of the banquet, filled with music, servants, and of course, wine. Perhaps this cup is reminding all who admire it to eat, drink, and be merry!