What is Murano Glass

Murano Glass is a glass in a chemical sense of the word that is made exclusively on the small island of Murano, which is located within the borders of the Northern Italy city of Venice.

The first time Murano glass appeared was in the 8th century Rome.

Murano Glass is made when potassium, silica, soda and lime are mixed together in a fiercely hot furnace at a temperature of 1500°C to turn the mixture into liquid state.

Murano became the glassmaking center when the Venetian Republic feared that fire would destruct the city's buildings since they were mostly wooden. In 1291, the glassmakers were forced to move their factories to Murano.

In 1960, archaeologists discovered one of the oldest glass furnaces on an Island of Venice built in the 8th century, and despite various ups and downs, Murano Glass has continued to exist and also grow successfully until today. Nowadays, Murano glass is still inseparable with Venetian glass.

Murano has a rich history of glasswork.

It is a small town located in Venice, a city in Northern Italy, situated 1.5 kilometers from the city of Venice. From 1900 until now, the number of professional glassmakers in Murano has dropped from around 6,000 to less than 1,000.

Often, gold or silver foil are added to the glass mixture, along with other minerals such as copper for metallic effects, zinc for white color, cobalt for blue, manganese for violet and more.

The master glassmakers mouth-blow and/or hand-craft the mixture with skillful techniques and fundamental tools, many of the tools have been developed since the Middle Ages and have not changed much.