Glass in the I millennium ad: composition, origin and distribution

This article presents an overview of the main results of investigations concerning the origin and distribution of “natron” glass in the Eastern Mediterranean and in Europe in the I millennium AD. Data on the chemical and isotopic composition of glass originating from Egyptian and Syro-Palestinian glass-making centres are summarized. Recent advances in this field of knowledge have enabled researchers to suggest a reconstruction of the system used for production and distribution of glass in the period under discussion and in a number of cases to determine the origin of raw glass imported to European secondary workshops