Most of the Sasanian glass vessels are simple in shape and decorated with continuous circles. Sasanian craftsmen also invented the "blowing method", a glass-making method that has been used by later generations, which uses special tools to blow the molten glass into cavitations and shape them. The glass products produced in this way have more diverse shapes. , more sophisticated. The blowing method is commonly known as "blowing big bubbles" and it requires two essential tools: a blowpipe and scissors. The earliest blowpipes were made of glass. The technical skills of the blowing method are completely mastered and controlled by mouth and hands, that is, by relying on the size and urgency of the blowing volume and the rotation speed and rotation mode of the blow tube.
Blowing a big bubble is to dip a blow tube into the glass melt, and then blow air into the melt from the hollow part at the other end of the blow tube. Since the glass melt that just came out is in a liquid state at this time, it must be Continuously rotate the blow tube, or dance the blow tube in the air to prevent the loss of molten glass, and then use scissors to guide, cut, twist, protrude, suppress and other operations to complete the shaping of the utensil.
This blowing method only appeared after the Northern Wei Dynasty. The traditional mold casting method was still used during the Three Kingdoms and Jin Dynasties. The early blown glass works in my country had thin walls and good transparency, but the glass contained more impurities and bubbles, and the surface was rough and the finish was not good. These shortcomings changed in the Sui Dynasty.
The Sasanian glass bowl was found in the tomb of Li Xian of the Northern Zhou Dynasty in Guyuan County, Ningxia. It is green in color and contains small bubbles. It basically retains the color and brightness of the original glass. The upper and lower parts of the abdomen are staggered and have two protrusions. The circular decoration is made by burning and blowing technology, and then is shaped by carving technology.
This glass bowl embodies the unique style and exquisite polishing craftsmanship in the shape and decoration of Sassanid glass. It is a representative of my country's Sassanid glass, indicating that Western glass technology was imported through the Silk Road at that time. In China, for example, light green Sassan glazed bowls from the Northern Wei Dynasty were found in Datong, Shanxi.