Tear bottles, or lachrymatory, were prevalent in ancient Roman times, when mourners filled glass…

Gertrud & Otto Natzler, Teardrop Bottle with Tigereye Glaze, 1963.

Their relationship was highly collaborative: Gertrud created the forms of their earthenware pieces, while Otto formulated and applied the dramatic glazes. The brown, smoky gray, and mottled yellow tigereye glaze fuses with the graceful form of the body, which Otto described as “ascend[ing] slowly upward with a slight curve, as if turning onto itself, only to change direction faintly just before ending.” Via Art Institute of Chicago

Tear bottles, or lachrymatory, were prevalent in ancient Roman times, when mourners filled glass vials with tears and placed them in burial tombs as symbols of love and respect.