early glass: the roots of stained glass and the first steps……

EARLYGLASS:

THE ROOTS OF STAINED GLASS AND THE FIRST STEPS……..

Egyptian falcon collar

2000 BC

The Egyptians probably discovered glass around 2500 BC. The dark green beads of this necklace are of faience .The necklace was found in the tomb of an Egyptian queen.

Egyptian vessel

1570 - 1320 B.C.

This vessel was made by pouring glass on a sand core. Colored threads , while hot, were "combed " to form the zig-zag patterns. Click here to see a movie showing how core formed vessels were created……

Egyptian red princesses

1379 - 1362 B.C.

This piece is made of molded or cast glass. The relaxed pose of the princesses reflects the more naturalistic style of art prevalent in Egypt's Amarna period.

Egyptian glass fragment

1400 - 1200 B.C.

This molded piece of glass portrays a royal Egyptian and was once part of a temple inlay.

Egyptian scarab

600 B.C.

This piece was found with a mummy and was probably used to ward off evil spirits. It was made with a glass paste.

Roman bowl

First century B.C.

The flower design is achieved from the millefiori technique that evolved earlier in the eastern Mediterranean region.The rim is created from twisted glass threads. Click here to see a movie on how fused bowls like this one was created….

Roman cup

First century B.C.

This remarkable vessel was cut from a single cast blank. There are traces of cutting and grinding on the handles to indicate they were not secondary attachments.

Roman ribbon bowl

First cen. B.C.-first cen. A.D.

Unlike other mosaic glass this vessel was made by laying ribbons of glass side by side on a flat surface, then fusing them to form a disk.The disk was then placed on a convex mold and slumped over it in the furnace. Colored glass like this was in fashion until the mid-first century A.D. when colorless glass gained popularity.

Roman mosaic plaque

First century A.D.

This plaque was probably part of a larger frieze or panel that adorned the wall of a house.The birds, branches, and flowers were fashioned from preformed canes that were fused and imbedded in a matrix of blue-green glass.

Roman mosaic plaque

First century A.D.

This piece represents an early example of glassblowing which revolutionized the production of glass. The technique was probably invented in Syria or Palestine around 40 B.C. This piece was a sealed vessel that probably contained a cosmetic.

Roman beaker

3rd or 4th century A.D.

This colorless beaker was blown with "snake-threads" added on (as manipulated molten globs on the surface during its creation).The natural color of glass is green or amber due to impurities. Before the Romans it was already known how to decolor glass. Romans used antimony or manganese as decolorants.

Roman cage cup

5th century A.D.

The intricately carved cup you are about to see displays unusual properties because the glass is composed of manganese and colloidal gold.The cup changes color in reflected and transmitted light.

Light reflecting off of outer surface

Light transmitted from inside to outside cup

Crown glass and transenna

5th (?) century A.D.

This fragment of crown glass and the plaster transenna were found in Jordan. This was a common method of glazing a window before lead was used. This method was still used in certain areas well past the invention of lead to glaze stained glass.

Early painted glass

Mid 6th century A.D.

While restoring the church of San Vitale in Ravenna earlier this century, a number of glass fragments were found. Most were unpainted except for this disk depicting Christ flanked by the Alpha and Omega. These fragments are believed to have come from the sixth century cloister and offer the first evidence of painting on glass.

Head of a saint fragment

9th century A.D.

These fragments of the head of a saint were discovered during excavations in 1932 at the Lorsch Abbey. The whole piece is about 12 inches in size and shows fairly straight stylized lines except for curls in the hair and the lobes of the ears.

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MILLEFIORI is a mosaic glass made from preformed canes usually of two or more colors..

How a millefiori/fused bowl is created…..from GLASS


FAIENCE is an early composite glass which is a mixture of silica-sand (ground quartz pebbles) and an alkali binder fused on the surface.


How a core formed vessel was made…..from GLASS



GLASSBLOWING requires considerable skill. Using an iron blowpipe 3 to 5 feet long molten glass is gathered at one end of the pipe. Additional glass can be added and through a series of reheatings, blowing, swinging, and shaping numerous forms can be obtained. See the GLASSMAKING module for further information.


TRANSENNA (or Claustra) was an early form of framing translucent window materials such as glass, mica, alabaster, and waxed linen. This method persisted in some regions centuries after the invention of lead for glazing stained glass windows. Transennae could be made of plaster, wood, or other suitable rigid materials.

CROWN GLASS is one of two common ways to make mouth-blown window glass. In crown glass after the initial bubble is formed, a bowl is shaped and transferred to a punty rod. The bowl is heated and then spun very fast. The centrifugal force causes the bowl to flatten into a disk which is annealed and eventually cut into sections for use.


PAINTING on glass refers to the application of vitreous paints which when fired on the glass in a kiln become permanent.

A 16th century illustration of a glass painter working on a piece of glass propped before his studio window.

early glass: the roots of stained glass and the first steps……

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