Before the first century BCE, glass was one of the most expensive and widely desired materials on the level of semiprecious stones. The ancient production of glass jewelry and vessels in Syria, Egypt and Mesopotamia dates back to the third millennium BCE. In the Hellenistic period (ca. 330–30 BCE), the production of luxury glass tableware took new heights as a result of new technologies. But it was the discovery of the glass-blowing technique in the first century BCE in what became Roman Syria that resulted in the widespread use of now much less expensive glassware. The Karam Collection includes nearly sixty pieces of beautiful glassware in various shapes and sizes, colors and functions. Half a dozen turned out to be modern. Mostly dating to the first four centuries of the common era, half of the glassware are perfume flasks, others are flasks and bottles for pouring oils, sauces or wines. Only a small selection could be displayed in this presentation.