Skip to main content

Tracking glass across the ancient world

Archaeologist Dr Juliet Spedding delivers this online workshop about how we can track glass across the ancient world and the vast distances that this material can travel.

To continue discussing this topic with your class try using the below worksheet questions (answers are at the bottom of the page). You can also download the worksheet questions and the worksheet answers. 

Worksheet questions

1) What is glass made out of?

  • a. silica
  • b. soda
  • c. lime
  • d. all of the above

2) What does the network modifier do?

3) What does the network stabiliser do and why is this a good thing?

4) Glass cools without _________ forming.

  • a. crystals
  • b. colours
  • c. air bubbles
  • d. shapes

5) What colours can copper turn glass?

6) What helps the copper turn glass different colours? AND What colour does a reduced amount of oxygen turn glass?

7) What is the beam of the scanning electron microscope made of?

  • a. electrons
  • b. photons

8) What information does the scanning electron microscope give you about an archaeological object?

  • a. chemical analysis
  • b. images
  • c. both

Worksheet answers 

Question 1) All of the above

Question 2) Lowers melting temperature of the silica

Questions 3) Stabilises the glass mixture, reduces chances of decay

Question 4) Crystals

Question 5) Blue and red

Question 6) The amount of oxygen in the furnace AND reduced amount of oxygen = red

Question 7) Electrons

Question 8) Both