GoKawiilResearchers replicate Roman-era nanotechnology behind color-shifting Lycurgus Cup
Scientists say they have reverse-engineered the technique used by ancient Roman artisans roughly 1,600 years ago to create the Lycurgus Cup, a glass vessel that appears jade-green under reflected light and glows red when light passes through it. The effect is attributed to metal nanoparticles embedded in the glass, and researchers have now reproduced a similar formula using modern materials analysis.