A Look Back at the History of Glass

An Animated History of Glass

Natural glass forms when certain types of rock is melted at a high temperature. Stone age humans are thought to have used sharp implements made from obsidian, a naturally occurring black glass produced by rapidly cooling volcanic lava. The earliest man-made glass that has been found is in the form of glass beads that are thought to date from around 3500 BC.

Hollow glass production is known to have been produced in around 1500 BC by Egyptian craftsmen who had developed a method for producing glass pots. The earliest examples of Egyptian glassware are three beautiful vases bearing the name of Pharaoh Thoutmosis III from 1504 - 1450 BC. Glassblowing was not used until around 27 BC to AD 14 and is attributed to Syrian craftsmen.

The Romans were responsible for initiating the spread and popularisation of glassmaking technology. It was the clever Romans who were responsible for the discovery of clear glass and began its use in architectural applications. High status buildings in Rome, Herculanium and Pompeii were the first to be fitted with almost transparent glass windows.

The Romans closely guarded their glass making secrets and it wasn't until the collapse of the Roman empire that glassmaking skills and technology began to spread throughout Europe and into the middle east. The Venetians, in particular, gained a reputation for glassmaking skill and artistic ability. They were particuarly adept in the practice of making of glass bottles and a fair number of the city's craftsmen left Italy to set up glassworks throughout Europe.

Leaping from Roman times to the modern day and we see how much glassmaking technology has progressed with the availability of self cleaning glass, safety glass, impact resistant and bullet proof glass. Glassware has also developed enormously throughout the centuries since Roman times with glasses of various shapes and sizes optimally designed for very specific applications.

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