# Sculpture recreates odd optical effects of famed Lycurgus Cup

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/sculpture-recreates-odd-optical-effects-of-famed-lycurgus-cup/
- Published: 2026-10-27T13:32:35+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-27T15:26:21+00:00
- Original publisher: Ars Technica
- Original article: https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/10/scientists-recreate-the-1600-year-old-recipe-of-lycurgus-cup/
- Topics: Americas, Culture, Food, Research, Science, World

## Key points

- Sheffield researchers recreated the Lycurgus Cup’s colour-changing glass.
- Embedded gold and silver nanoparticles cause the optical effect.
- A contemporary sculpture was made using the repeatable recipe.

## Summary

Researchers at the University of Sheffield have recreated a Roman glass recipe that produces the Lycurgus Cup’s striking colour shift: green in reflected light and red when backlit. The work offers a repeatable way to make the unusual glass, helping scientists and artists explore materials that control how light behaves.

The cup dates to around 400 CE and is one of about 40 surviving Roman cage cups. Its colours come from tiny gold and silver particles embedded in the glass, whose interaction with light changes with the viewing angle. Earlier researchers reproduced the effect in a 3D-printable material, but Sheffield researchers Lisa Hollands and Caroline Jackson developed a consistent glass-making recipe; glass artist Elliott Walker then used it to create a contemporary sculpture.

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