Italian glass vase
above: Italian Glass
vase by Seguso marked
Seguso Viro Murano



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Italian Glass from
The Glass Encyclopedia

A short explanation of Italian Glass:

Glass and glassmaking skills were spread thoughout Europe some two thousand years ago by the Romans who made bottles, vases, and hollow vessels in Rome for supply throughout their empire.

There was a decline in glassmaking when the Roman Empire fell, but the success of Venice as a trading centre attracted glass craftsmen from Syria and other eastern centres to Italy. Venice had established itself as a glassmaking centre as early as 450 A.D.

Probably starting with glass mosaic tiles, glassmaking continued to flourish in Venice. In the thirteenth century there was a Glassmakers' Guild, and in 1292 an ordinance was passed in the city which banished glassmaking to the island of Murano in the Venetian lagoon. The reason was partly to protect other buildings from fires (which commonly started in glassworks - the Great Fire of London is believed to have started in a glassworks); and partly to retain a monopoly on the glass trade. The death penalty was used as a threat to keep glassworkers on Murano, and it was even forbidden to teach foreigners the trade secrets of glassmaking.

Throughout the middle ages Venetian glass from Italy led the world. Their great secrets included the formula for Cristallo glass, a very clear transparent glass which was particularly well suited to elaborate trailing and thinly-blown, intricate designs. They also used thinly sliced millefiori canes, and many of their designs were similar to popular Roman designs, albeit thinner and more delicate. Another of their great inventions was lattimo or milk glass, an opaque milky white glass. They made some white cups and beakers, but mostly lattimo glass was used in the form of thin canes to make elaborate lacy patterns in clear glass.

Italian supremacy in glassmaking was challenged and overtaken during the 19th & 20th centuries by glassmakers in Bohemia and England. More recently, the Contemporary (Studio) Glass Movement which flourished in the USA and spread around the world, was slow to take off in Italy. It is, however, well in evidence there today.



There are many very interesting books on Italian Glass. Here are some that we hope you find helpful. Click on the book cover or the title to read more about that book.

Aureliano Toso Glass 2016 Martinuzzi at venini glass 2014 Seguso glass book 2014 Lino Tagliapietra 2012 Lino Tagliapietra 2011 Venetian Glass Lino Tagliapietra 2008 Venini glass book Murano glass Themes 2007 Murano Island Glass 2006 Lino Tagliapietra glass 2006 Seguso glass book 2006 Italian glass book Fratelli Tosso glass book Islamic Influence Venetian glass book Beyond Venice Venetian glass book Venini glass book Italian glass Italian glass book Murano glass book Murano history