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Italian Mirrors: the glass (date : 01 November 2001), The troubled times following the fall of the Western Roman Empire were very detrimental to the exchange of craftsmanship know-how, including glass production. Only Italy, and especially Venice, continued to benefit from the old skills and knowledge. Certain documents testify to the presence of glassmakers in the 13th century, while pieces produced in the 15th century show that it was then that they really started to take off. In 1268 the 'fiolari', makers of glass leaves, came together into a well-organised guild, and in 1293 the Venetian Republic urged the glassmakers to establish themselves in Murano. The 'capitolare', an organisation created in 1271 by the Republic in order to manage production, remained active for 500 years. It resolved technical questions: the type of wood used to feed the ovens, number of night watches and period of work, as well as protecting workers families. Above all it monitored the movements of glassmakers very closely, and immigrants were very severely punished. During the second half of the 15th century, Murano perfected the crystal which assured the pre-eminence of its glassmakers and cemented its commercial ties to the rest of Europe. Alongside this activity, the mirror makers were also producing for export up until the 17th century, at which point Venice was supplanted by the French, who had come up with a technique of pouring glass. Murano's decline started in the 18th century, as other European countries had by then managed to fill the gaps in their knowledge of glass manufacture. So, the island which numbered at its height around 4000 people involved in the production of glass, had just 383 in 1773. However, Venice experienced a leap in activity in the 18th century following the invention of crystal lustre by Giuseppe Briati. In 1806 all the Venetian guilds were dissolved, marking the end of the period of craftsmanship and the entry into the industrial age. At the end of the 16th century, mirrors in precious metals, as well as those in rock crystal became more and more rare. Two ancient texts allow us to penetrate the secrets of the Venetian masters. The French writer de Brosses described the art to a Mr de Blancey on August 29th 1739: "I have just returned from Murano, where I went to see the work of the mirror manufactory. Their glass is not as big, nor as white as ours is, but it is more transparent and less liable to flaws. It is not poured onto copper tables like ours, but blown like bottles. The workers have to be extremely big and hearty to carry out this work, especially to balance these huge globes of crystal in the air, which are held at the end of the iron rod used for blowing. The worker takes from the crucible of the oven a large quantity of molten matter at the end of his hollow rod, this matter is sticky and has the consistency of gum. The worker then blows it into a hollow globe, and by balancing it in the air and putting it in the mouth of the furnace from time to time, in order to keep it molten, and by turning it constantly to prevent it from running to one side or the other, he is able to make a long oval. Then another worker, with the point of a pair of scissors rather like sheep shears, i.e. which open when released, pierces the end of the oval. The first worker who is holding the rod to which the globe is attached, turns it very rapidly, while the second gradually opens his hand holding the scissors. In this way, the oval is opened up completely at one of its ends, like the rim of a glass. Then it is detached from the first rod and is reattached by the open end to another, especially made for the purpose. Then, using the same technique described above, the other end is opened. So now there is a long glass cylinder with a large diameter. It is again put into the mouth of the furnace, while still being turned, in order to re-soften it a little, and then, in the blink of an eye and with a single cut from the scissors the glass is cut along its length and is promptly spread out on a copper table. There is little more to do except heat it up again in another oven then polish it and silver it in the normal way". Another reference text "A Frenchman's Journey in Italy" appeared in 1765, also dwells on the Muranese glassworks: "The arts are more cultivated in Venice than in the rest of Italy. The mirrors of Murano are sent everywhere, and are only surpassed by French mirrors. Mirrors are only made at the house of Jean Mota on the island of Murano. They only work two days per week and a dozen workers there are enough to blow 600 pieces of glass in a morning. The frit is made with Spanish ash and earth from Vicenza in a separate oven in 6 hours, and then this frit is put into a crucible for 7 or 8 days and used to make the glass. The glass can be blown up to 4'6" (about 140 cms) but normally not more than 3' (about 90 cms). After it has been blown with great difficulty, it is cut and spread out on a stone. It is taken with an iron shovel and put above the furnace where it cools gently. Venice was the principal centre of production for mirrors. In fact, as we have seen, Murano was practically the central point for all European demand. Also two procedures, revolutionary for the glass industry, happened there: crystallised glass and glass blowing.Large-scale mirrors only appeared in the second half of the 17th century, but spectacular decoration was already being carried out by placing small plates alongside each other. The fashion for mirrored cabinets also spread in the 1660s. Thus the mirror became an element of primary importance in interior architecture. |
  
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