‘Glass is a Middle Eastern material – these people were the kings of glassmaking.’
Roadshow specialist and owner of Glass Etc in Rye. ‘For the rst 2,000 years we made beads and enamels like those found in Tutankhamun’s mask.’
Glassmaking changed dramatically in around 50BC, when glassblowing was invented in the Middle East. ‘Until that point, the only way to make vessels was to wrap molten glass around animal dung, known as core forming,’ says Andy. ‘Glass is a Middle Eastern material – these people were the kings of glassmaking.’ When the Romans occupied the Middle East and discovered glass, they introduced glassblowing throughout their domain and exquisite pieces were produced until the empire collapsed and the skills were lost in AD476.
Just a er 1400 there was another major shi in glassmaking history, when the Mongol hordes invaded Syria. ‘Damascus was the world centre for glassmaking and it was smashed to pieces,’ says Andy. ‘People were forced out of Syria and ed through countries such as Turkey and Italy.
The best glassmakers in the world turned up in Venice, whose traders they had been dealing with and had a edgling glass industry on the island of Murano.’ Economies in Europe boomed and glass gradually spread across the continent. ‘The Europeans were distilling and fermenting alcoholic drinks and countless glass drinking vessels were made,’ says Andy. English glassmaking had been undistinguished until George Ravenscro , who exported glass and lace from Venice, patented lead crystal in 1674. This technological breakthrough made glass clearer, which led to the most important spin-o from the glass industry – lenses. ‘The greatest thing glass will ever do for history is lenses,’ says Andy. ‘It was a scienti c revolution. Where we had lagged behind China and the Middle East, we were now supercharged with an amazing material that could help the hard-of-sight to see, and meant we could look through a microscope.’
The scienti c revolution was soon followed by the Industrial Revolution. The power from burning coal and new inventions such as glassmaking and pressing machines resulted in mass production of glass pieces and the ability to produce all manner of objects much more cheaply. In a reaction to such an industrial scale, glass items were made for decorative purposes and works of art, kick-starting the studio glass movement and the modern use of it as an artistic medium.
Adam Fileman of Fileman Antiques, which specialises in glass,
says the most collectable glass antiques today consist of lighting, drinking vessels, paperweights, decanters and 20th-century decorative pieces by Lalique, Baccarat and Gallé. ‘Cut glass, coloured glass and cameo glass are also very collectable,’ he says. ‘Wine glasses have always been popular.’
In terms of price, it varies depending on age, condition, rarity, size and maker. ‘Drinking glasses start at about £20 a set,’ says Andy. But they can reach £20,000-£30,000 plus for something exceptionally rare. ‘A very good cameo will fetch a lot,’ says Adam. ‘Paperweights range from £200 to £3,000 for a really great example. An extremely rare one can be £50,000. Due to the number of parts, lighting can be expensive – around £1,000 to £10,000 for a Victorian or Regency chandelier and up to £60,000 for something larger.’