MATERIAL MATTERS: CUT GLASS
Blending timeless beauty and innate utility, cut glass is a practical and decorative staple in homes, and antique pieces are eminently collectable
The story of this practical and decorative "eld
Until the late 17th century, the British – like many of their European counterparts – saw their glass demands ful ! lled by ‘soda glass’. This lightweight material, which originated in Venice, was composed of three basic components: silica, soda ash and lime. However, soda glass was not perfect and the glassmaking industry in England was revolutionised in the late 1600s when George Ravenscro" began exploring the advantages of adding lead oxide to the glass mix. The resulting material – lead glass – was superior to the Venetian product: its appearance more brilliant, its form heavier and better suited to cutting and engraving.
This was by no means the ! rst instance of lead being used in glass items – glass with lead oxide content has been recorded as early as 1400BC in Mesopotamia, but Ravenscro"’s discovery at his Savoy-based glasshouse industrialised the material and marked the start of a new chapter in the history of glass.
This new lead glass, also known as crystal, was perfected by the 1680s
and after Ravenscrofts patent expired in 1681, a host of British glasshouses began working with lead glass, as demand for the product swi !ly grew. By the 1700s production was booming and crystal was the predominant material used in drinking glasses – and other tableware – in Britain, and was taking hold across Europe, too.
Lead glass manufacture in 18thcentury England was so prolific that antiques collectors today can still find plenty of crystal drinking glasses for all budgets. ‘ Very little English glass survives outside museums before 1690–1700 and if
it came on the market it would be heavily contested by collectors,’ explains Robert Marris of glass dealer Marris Antiques. ‘ However, 18th- century English drinking glasses are a popular collecting area. They are relatively plentiful and the progression of styles throughout the century is well recorded, beginning with the early heavy balusters (1700–1720), balustroids (1720–1740), plain stems (1750–1780), air twists (1750–1760), opaque twist (1760–1780) and facet- cut stems (1770–1800), though the dates are general and styles did overlap.’ It is almost impossible to be certain which glasshouse produced what as the pieces are generally not marked.
It’s not solely 18th- century pieces that o er opportunities for collectors. There are later cut-glass pieces that are worth seeking out. Stourbridge makers such as Stevens & Williams and the Richardson glassworks produced products of an excellent quality, as did makers from the Whitefriars factory in London. ‘ My personal preference is for early Whitefriars,’ says Robert. ‘ This was produced in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by designers such as
‘My personal preference is for early Whitefriars produced by designers such as Philip Webb, TG Jackson and Harry Powell. I believe this is some of the nest’
Philip Webb, TG Jackson and Harry Powell. I believe this glass is some of the nest produced in England during that period.’
While it is possible to nd antique crystal for under £50, there is huge variation in value, and some standout pieces can command astonishing
gures. ‘A William Beilby enamelled armorial goblet with the Royal Arms of William of Orange sold in 2011 for £109,250 at Bonhams,’ cites Robert.