Here Is Why You Should Choose Venetian Glass!

Basically there is no difference between Venetian glass and Murano glass and the terms are often used interchangeably.

A Bit Of History

The origins of glassmaking in Venice go back to the times of the Roman Empire when molded glass was used for illumination in bathhouses. Blending Roman experience with the skills learned from the Byzantine Empire and trade with the Orient, Venice emerged as a prominent glass-manufacturing center as early as the 8th century.

By the late 1200s, the production of glass objects of the finest quality was the city’s major industry as confirmed by the establishment of the Glassmakers Guild that laid out rules and regulations for the craftsmen. The purpose of the guild was to safeguard the secrets of the trade and ensure the profitability of the industry.

A radical law was passed in 1291 that laid the ground for the establishment of Murano as a premier glass-manufacturing center. This law required that all furnaces used for glassmaking be moved from Venice into Murano to avoid the risk of fire from the furnaces spreading onto the largely wooden structures of overpopulated Venice. Many historians agree that the true motive for this law was to isolate the glass craftsmen to a location where they wouldn’t be able to disclose trade secrets. A subsequent law passed in 1295 forbidding the glassmakers from leaving the city confirms this theory.

Artisans working in the glass trade were well rewarded for their efforts. They had a privileged social status, and their daughters were allowed to marry into the wealthiest and noblest of Venetian families. By applying this clever approach, Venetian government ensured that the glassmakers encouraged their offspring to carry on the trade, and that trade secrets stayed in the families and fueled creative processes leading to innovation and further success. This, along with Venice’s convenient location at the crossroads of trade between East and West, gave Venice monopoly power in manufacturing and selling quality glass throughout Europe that lasted for centuries.

Why Venetian Glass?

Venetian glass in its core is a material consisting of a homogenous mixture of various substances in the form of a powder. The glass powder transforms into a pasty consistency when heated to a temperature varying between 1300°C and 1400°C and becomes workable liquid glass at around 1500°C. The liquid glass gains its final shape by the expert hands of the Venetian glass-maker and upon cooling it becomes Murano glass.

The Venetian glass is made up of 70% silica sand, added to a 30% of other substances called “fluxes” (soda and lime). These added substances “fluxes” allows the glass to be melted at a lower temperature. When the glass melts at a lower temperature, it is possible to create homogeneous and bubble free Venetian glass.

The Venetian glass in its basic composition is colorless. The colors are obtained by adding small amounts of minerals, oxides, and chemical derivatives to the base composition of the glass powder. This is the Venetian magic that creates infinite combinations of transparent colors, crayons and alabasters. Cobalt is used for the gradations of the blue, gold for the ruby, selenium for the red, iron chromium nickel for violet, cryolite for white, manganese for black, cadmium yellow, sulfur and resin for topaz, oxide copper to green, lead arsenic fluorine for opals.

What makes the Venetian glass unique is the glass powder used to create the Venetian glass. The ingredients of the homogenous mixture of various substances in the form of a powder used to create Venetian glass is a well-kept secret among the glass-manufacturers of Venice since centuries. [quote]Everybody knows about it, but nobody talks about it in the island of Venice.[/quote]