description Lycurgus Cup Overview
The Lycurgus Cup is a fourth-century Roman glass vessel in the British Museum, made as an openwork cage cup depicting the mythical king Lycurgus entangled by vines. Its glass appears green in reflected light but red when light passes through it, an effect produced by minute particles of gold and silver dispersed within the material. The object is an unusual surviving example of Roman glassmaking and ancient dichroic glass technology.
insights Ranking position
Lycurgus Cup ranks #104 of 235 in the Artifact ranking, behind The Hay Wain, ahead of Whistler's Mother.
help Lycurgus Cup FAQ
Why does the Lycurgus Cup change from green to red?
The glass looks green in reflected light but turns reddish when illuminated from behind. Tiny particles containing gold and silver interact with light to produce this unusual dichroic effect.
What story is carved on the Lycurgus Cup?
The cup depicts King Lycurgus trapped in vines after opposing Dionysus, the Roman Bacchus, and his followers. Its figures form an openwork cage around the inner glass vessel.
Did Roman glassmakers understand nanotechnology?
Modern analysis explains the color effect through metal particles at an extremely small scale. Roman artisans clearly knew how to produce the material, but there is no evidence that they understood it through modern particle physics or deliberately practiced nanotechnology as defined today.
Where is the Lycurgus Cup displayed?
The fourth-century vessel belongs to the British Museum in London. Its lighting can be changed to demonstrate the contrast between reflected and transmitted light.
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