Murano Glass - Venice: A Travel Guide to Murano Glass, Carnival Masks, Gondolas, Lace, Paper and More - page 15

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Murano Glass

The cluster of islands known as Murano emerges from the Venetian lagoon, a vast ex-

panse of water whose surface reflects every shift in light. Since the thirteenth cen-
tury, glassmakers have observed these shimmering waters outside their workshops, a
vision reflected in the art that has made Murano, and its glass masters, world-famous.
Glass vessels dating from the Roman era have been excavated across the Veneto. Some
of these glass works incorporate classic techniques, such as murrina that we now associate
with Murano glass, and they look remarkably consistent with glass produced in Venice even
today. Fioleri (glass-, or more specifically, bottle-makers) are noted in Venetian documents
as far back as the tenth century, and their name gives an idea of the utilitarian nature of the
wares they probably produced at that time: tableware, window glass, and other household
items. During the Middle Ages the art of glassmaking must have also been closely linked
with mosaic, which was widely used across the city. Venetian mosaicists regularly used glass
tesserae , or pieces, in creating the mosaics that decorated the floors, walls, and vaults of
many of the city's churches. By the 1220s, glassmakers were organized into guilds operating
under a strict set of statutes that governed not only their working conditions but also many
other aspects of the glassmakers' lives.
Glassblowers came to be located on Murano for two reasons. The first was to minimize
fire risk in Venice. The great number of glass-firing ovens—which regularly reached some
1500 degrees Celsius—produced beautiful glass objects but also initiated fires in the city.
The fire hazard must have become onerous because by the 1270s, city officials had begun
to transfer glass workshops from the center of Venice to Murano, a process completed by
1291. The second reason to relocate glassmakers to Murano was probably political. Trade
secrets of Murano glassmaking were already being leaked across Europe during the Middle
Ages, and sequestering glassmakers on Murano allowed the Republic to control glass pro-
duction and exportation, ensuring that these secrets remained in Venice. Glassmakers faced
steep fines or even imprisonment if they traveled outside the Republic, though interestingly,