Replicating the Color-Changing Effect of the Lycurgus Cup

Although most archaeological finds from ancient civilizations aren’t quite as exciting as what you might expect from the movies, occasionally you come across something that’s truly special. Replicating the Color-Changing Effect of the Lycurgus Cup. The Lycurgus Cup is one of those, with the 3rd or 4th century CE glass cup and its incredible detail surviving likely because it ended up in church treasuries after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.

Now its almost magical dichroic glass effect has been recreated in a modern take by researchers at the University of Sheffield. The Lycurgus cup with light shining through it. This serves to give the portrayed scene – of the demise of King Lycurgus from Greek mythology – an extra boost with the right lighting.

The cause of this dichroic effect in this ancient marvel of glass work was unknown for the longest time, but research on a fragment of the glass revealed that it contains nanoparticles of both gold and silver. Since then several researchers have recreated this dichroic glass, with [Lars Kool] et al. Using FDM 3D printing to create objects embedded with the same nanoparticles that also display this effect.