Every region in Italy is famous for producing some specific authentic Italian crafts. Today I’d like to talk about one of the most famous Italian crafts in the world, that’s to say Murano glass.
The most famous Italian area for Murano glass is, as the noun itself says, without any doubt the island of Murano.
Murano glass history
It seems that glass production in Venice was already present around 450. The glassmakers improved their technique so much and produced objects of such beauty that Venice became a super important city in glass production.
Around the XIII century, the city decided that it should protect glassmaking secrets at all costs. So, it proclaimed that it was forbidden for glassmakers to share their secrets outside of Venice. Moreover, the city decided that glassmakers couldn’t leave the city without a written permission. If they disobeyed, and didn’t come back immediately, their family could be imprisoned. If after that, they still wouldn’t come back, the city would send an assassin to kill them, wherever they were.
Always around the XIII century, the city of Venice decided that all the glassmaking industries had to be moved to Murano Island. This for at least two reasons. The first one was linked to the fact that to produce the glass glassmakers needed big furnaces and big furnaces brought with them a high fire hazard. So, moving all the industries on an island, would reduce the risk that fire spread all over the city of Venice.
The second reason was that by moving all glassmakers on an island, it would have been more difficult for them to leave the area without being caught and so to share their secrets with someone.
Although glassmakers had to follow some basic rules, they also had some special incentives. For example, they didn’t work in summer, their children could marry with nobles and they had judicial immunity.
Some of the most popular creations among Murano glassmakers are the beads, used in jewelry, calcedonio, a glass that looks like the chalcedony stone, the elegant chandeliers, cristallo, the clearest glass of the 15th century, murine and millefiori.
Today there are still many glassmakers in Venice who produce authentic Italian crafts. It requires a lot of patience and experience to create beautiful pieces of Murano glass.
If you want to see a little bit more how Murano glass is created, have a look at this short Italian video. It will be interesting and it can also be useful to improve your understanding of the Italian language.
Now, what about you? Have you ever been to Murano or Venice? Did you like it? Do you have some authentic Italian crafts at home?
Credits
Original image by
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