Murano glass blowing was stolen by people all over the world for centuries, though not with much success. On the island of Murano, making Murano glass is deeply woven into the culture of the glassblowers. The Murano families are the last surviving guardians of ancient Murano glass blowing techniques. Glass-making secrets are passed from family to family within the Venetian glass-creating industry. Children, as young as 12, are helping their grandfathers and fathers in the furnaces and learning how to blow glass. Thus, it is impossible for the ancient secrets and valuable knowledge to fall into the wrong hands.
What is Murano Glass?
Most people refer to Venetian art glass or Italian art glass when they refer to sculptures, vases, chandeliers, and decorative glass objects from the island of Murano, Italy. It is located in the lagoon of Venice, a small island where the art of glassmaking has been practiced for more than 1000 years. Artworks made of Murano glass can only be called Murano glass artworks.
There are unfortunately many fake Venetian glassworks available on the market. Despite not being produced in Murano, these glassworks are marketed as ‘Murano Styles’ to deceive customers. It’s good news that, once you understand what genuine Murano glass looks like, you will be able to determine if the artwork is genuine or not.
How to Distinguish Between Real and Fake Murano Glass?
Here Original Murano Glass OMG®, the world-best experts in genuine Murano Glass will explain to us how to identify the real pieces. You will find below the Four Top Characteristics to check when purchasing Murano glassworks.
Find flaws
A real Murano glass piece is handmade, so there are inherently imperfections. An example of such an imperfection could be an air bubble or a mark from the Pont.
Air Bubbles
By layering colors, the glass master blows one color at a time and then layers the colors on top of each other. This process is bound to create small air bubbles. Lead is used as a component in the glass composition in some locations far from Venice and Italy in order to eliminate bubbles. Metal is a dangerous metal that has nothing to do with Venetian Glass. In Murano, lead is forbidden and unblemished crystal is considered the hallmark of Murano glass authenticity.
Pontil Mark
There is also a small imperfection called the Pontil mark. The Pontil mark appears when the glass master breaks the Pontil rod on a completed project of blown Murano glass. Pontil marks are found at the bottom of handblown art. It is not smooth when you touch the Pontil mark with your finger.
Verify origin by looking for proof
You can only find genuine Murano glassworks on the island of Murano in Italy. There is no brand called Murano; it is a physical location. If the glass master’s signature and/or the certificate of authenticity are present, you can identify the origin of the piece of glass.
Authentic Murano Glass Signature
Ensure the artwork is signed by the glass master. Make sure the glass master is indeed located in Murano, Italy, by checking online. Compare the signature with the one on the glass master to make sure it is original.
Authentication sticker
You can identify the Murano Island on the artwork by the sticker certifying the island’s origin. As there are different certifications available, the artwork may have more than one sticker.
You can identify the artist by the sticker, which bears either the name of the artist or the name of the atelier. Then go online and search for the artist’s address. Compare the sticker on the artwork to the one displayed on the website as well.
Look for High Quality
Striking Colors
The Murano glassblowers are masters at layering the different shades of molten glass, which can be identified easily and is difficult to duplicate with high quality.
24 Karat Gold or 925 Silver Infusion
Venetian glass masters are also famous for incorporating gold and silver into their masterpieces. Infusion of silver and gold is complex, difficult to replicate without buying expensive raw materials, which makes replication of the process difficult.
Visit the Island of Murano
Take a tour of Murano and see the process of creating real Murano glass. You can purchase beautiful glasswork on an island from a seller who guarantees its origin.
You can watch a glassmaker as he creates an object using the techniques of blowing and sculpting during Murano glass factory’s tour. The tour ends with a glass souvenir you can take home so you can remember this unique experience.
Explore Murano glass factory and admire how a master glassmaker works.
Murano glass: Learn how and where it’s made and how it’s shaped to make fabulous items. Master glassmakers will create two objects using two popular techniques: blowing and carving. Watch the Murano glass blowing demonstration and Murano blowing show in the red furnace during your visit.
Buy From a Trusted Online Shop
The artwork displayed in the Original Murano Glass OMG® showroom is officially certified Murano glasswork. You can be sure that will get real Murano glass masterpieces.
Laila Azzahra is a professional writer and blogger that loves to write about technology, business, entertainment, science, and health.