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_ eAPTtAL ENTERTAlNMRff, FMa.Septomper 11,1998-15ANTIQUESBy NADJA MARIL For The Capita sometimes wonder whether the reproductions of today will be ■ considered the antiques of toirorrow'CeffiinTy H gets very confusing when so many good copies are made of desirable antiques which are becoming scarce. Whenever this happens, whether it be copies of pressed oak high chairs or silver and marcasite jewelry, the value and desirability of the genuine, article goes down because people become confused as to authenticity. The copies grow cheaper as they become more plentiful. After a few years, interest falls and those in the reproduction business decide to copy somethingone of Salviati’s companies which sold for 4550 toa 13-by-7-inch vase with a ruffled rim which sold fortm;-ielse, ; y.\Sometimes, the concept of copying something old evolves into an art form of its own. Such is the case with Venetian glass. In 1830, art unscrupulous Venetian antiques dealer named Sanquirico was . commissioned the Orgaro family of glass artisans to makeTBtrarrrar~reproductfo'rls'oi1 century Murano glass using the lost techniqueof filigree decoration......The copies were so good, he wasable to successfully sell the pieces as antique.Having re-introduced filigree glass to the artisans of the island of Murano, it became part of their current knowledge of artistic glass decoration andgradually became known as Zanfirico a derivative of Sanquirico'sname,In, 1859, Antonio Salviati founded the glass company called “Salviati Dott. Antonio tu Partolomeo with the initial purpose of creating glass mosaics for the restoration of churches and public buildingsUnder the leadership of glasstechnician Lonrenzo Radi, copies were made of 15th-, 16th*, 17th- and 18th-century glassware. The pieces Salviati's company were copying were copies themselves'Theyhad-been inspired by--ancient Roman and Byzantine glass. They were making copies of copies. In 1862, they earned a gold metal at the London International : Exhibition.Salviati’s vision of revitalizing Vemce’6former lucrative glass • industry evol ved into not only the recreation of beautiful pieces of glass from earlier eras, but new art forms.One thousand years earlier, Venice had.been a leading military and mercantile power. By the end of the 13th century, Venice had been the most important and crowded glassmaking center in Europe. Historians theorize that Romans from the glass making town of Aqufleia migrated to Venice along with artisans from Constantinople after the sack of Byzantium in 1204.In 1291 the Venetian government forced all the glassmakers and their faniiUes tolive andworkohtfie nearby island of Murano:Murano glassmakers lived a privileged but caged existence. Their daughters could marry Venetian nobles without endangering the titles of the nobility or their offspring, but the glass makers themselves could never move from the island. If they did, their close relatives were . imprisoned and assassins were sent by the Grand Council to hunt andkill escapees. Still, some did successfully depart, and some of the secrets of Venetian glassmaking were spread to parts of Eastern and Western Europe.In i 797, Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Venice and the -• • subsequent domination by France ; and Austria wiped out the Venetian glass industry by the middle of theraw material needed for making glass; along with large taxes on ; exports, made glass making a highly unprofitable business. The only glass companies which survived were those who focused onypftXngntiHtirt»n:it«»ms-flnd beadswhich were needed in the Austriancolonial trade;In the 1860s, a Glass Museum and Design School on the island of Murano was founded and in 1866, Venice became part of the newly united Kingdom of Italy. The rebirth of Venetian glassmaking had begun. 'In 1866, Salviati went to England in pursuit of more financial backing. A new company was formed called Societa Anonima per Axiom Salviati C. In 1872, the : name Venice and Murano Glass and Mosaic Company Ltd., appeared buth WMHimimiiuiai'iyiiiCapagnia de Veneta e Murano. Another Venetian finn, Francesco Ferro e Figlio was founded in 1880.It is difficult to distinguish which piece of Venetian glass is attributable to which 19th century company, with so many old techniques being copied and shared between the various artisans who may have worked for more than one glass house in their lifetime. It is not however, hard to distinguish19th century Venetian glass from the glass of other countries andcontemporary derivatives.Vibrant, with a lively whimsical quality, Venetian glass was made in a variety of shapes and colors fromdeep red to transparent violet, from opalescent white to Aventurine which contains tiny metallic bits of copper which appear in the body of the glass as it cools. '' While some pieces were painted with enamel, others had a pattern; created within the glass, such as mosaic glass which was composed by carefully melting shards of different colors together and blowing them into a shape before they had a chance to blend.' \ s' V r • ‘ ^ • ,-* . J' 9 •Twisted filigree glass was made , by softening canes of glass aridincorporating them with twisted spirals of milk glass. The twisted canes of glass were then placed underneath a large softened skin of glass, fused together in the furnace and then blown into a shape.: Network filigree placed a simple bubble with applied glass threading inside another similar bubble with applied threads in the opposite direction,/.The fenicio technique of decoration would apply variously colored parallel threads to the bodywerestill soft, a comb was used to shape the threads into special festoons.; Present-day prices for 19th-century Venetian glass range from, a 7-by-lO-inch amber and aventurine compote attributed toBULLOCK'SFurniture RestorationRefinWiIng* Repairing • Stripping Veneer • Cenlng • Faux FinishesSPECIALISM W ANTIQUE RESTORATION1281 General's Highway Crownsvie, MD410-923-290011Annapolis resident Nadja Maril is a nationally known author,appraiser and antiques deoriter. vQuestions for her columnshouldbe mailed to Box 61 80, Annapolis, MD 21401. Sorry but Ms. Maril can only respond toihose questions shthds-spacefor in her column. All photos and sketches become the property of the Capital-Gazette Newspapers and cannot be returned. -(*a\*J.....1.1«•f • • . + % • 1 •T.mamr •'* -iOver 40 select dealers showcasing the largest collection of quality antiques in the area plus... • Knowledgeable Staff• Convenient Location Easy Access to 50,301 97 • Complimentary , RefreshmentsOPEN DAILY 10-5 • ■ • • •2009 West Street, Annapolis, MD410-266-0635475601
Newspaper Details
Capital Gazette
Annapolis, Maryland, US
Fri, Sep 11, 1998
Page 62
Full Page
Clipped by
Clyde C.
MD, USA 27 Sep 2018
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