Portland Vase not antique?

Dr Jerome Eisenberg, one of the world's leading authorities on ancient art, is "convinced" that the Portland Vase was made during the Renaissance.

The vase is described by the [British] museum as "the most famous cameo-glass vessel from antiquity" and was a widely accepted to have been made circa 30-20 BC. . .

Dr Eisenberg, editor-in chief of ancient art and archaeology magazine Minerva, has been on a personal quest to establish the origin of the vase for 32 years. In the current issue of Minerva, he wrote that it was thought to have been found in the tomb of Emperor Severus Alexander in 1582.

But "numerous stylistic inconsistencies" - meaning some images were closer to Renaissance style than Roman - meant it was likely to have been made in the second half of the 16th Century, he wrote.

Posted by David on August 24, 2003 3:12 AM