Ewer with Lion Mask (Technique)

Listen as glass artist William Gudenrath describes the cane work (or filigrana) technique used to make this ewer. This Venetian ewer is made with milk glass canes and decorated with applied lion-mask prunts (small ornaments that are like medallions stuck to the outside of a vessel). Differently patterned milk glass canes were, and are, used to make glass vessels that have been fashionable ever since the 16th and 17th centuries. Initially, glass canes are “pulled” and joined before any object is shaped. The lace or net patterned reticello glass uses two layers of canes joined on top of each other at a 90-degree angle. The Venetian glassmakers took their skill to new heights by using these canework techniques, and they manufactured glass objects that show both simpler straight canes and overlayed patterns. Some of the pieces on display in this section are made from canes and are also mold-blown to give the body shape a decorative form. Other objects profit from applied prunts.
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