of the times

SAND and ashes, a
touch of lime, and
sometimes a dash of
cobalt or copper.

Those are the basic ingre-
dients for the glass vessels
that have graced homes and
tables for many years.

In fact, the art of glass-
making was already ancient
when, two thousand years
ago, artisans began to exper:
iment with glass-blowing.
Over the centuries they
developed a multitude of
new techniques and uses.
Add the colorful inventions
of Venetian glass artists, the
delicate patterns created by
Bohemian glass cutters, and
the goblet on your table
takes on a whole new facet.

It has a unique history
and tradition. The secrets of
manufacture were passed
from generation to genera-
tion. Those who divulged
them were oftei punished
by death.

If you bought your gob-
let quite recently, you may
have in front of you a prod-
uct of good computer tech-
nology. ;

How can yon tell the dif-
ference? The pattern on the
machine-cut glass will be
perfect. Minute imperfec-
tions point to the hand of a
master ‘cutter or engraver.
But let’s take.a step back.

‘Not long ago I decided
to tackle all the materials we
have in our homes, those
underfoot and on walls,

“ those made by nature and
“ those made by hand, the

mundane and the exquisite.

My first foray took me
into the world of glass and
convinced me that the
undertaking was quite pian:
ne. You will know what I
mean if, for amament, you
imaging vour life without
glass — no eve glasses, no
window panes, no wind-
shields, no light bulbs, no
test tubes, no mirrors.

But even without going
into those necessities, glass is
still a big subject.

How, for instance, do
you tell a glass vase from a
crystal vase? Is it true that
crystal decanters are poise
nous? What makes glass red,
or blue, or yellow, and how
come itcan be red oa the
outside, when the pattern
reveals clear wlass just below
the surface?

“We carry no glass,” said
Brigitte Reichert, of Herzog
Crystal, in answer to my

tion, “All our glasses are
made of crystal.”

Plain glass, I learned, is
colored; you can see its
green tinge at the edge of a
sheet of glass. With few
exceptions, ali glasses are
made of crystal. Hence their
perfectly pure transparency
and light weight.

They can be cut, erched,
engraved or polished.
Thicker glass is needed to
cut the deep and intricate
facets that refract the light
and make glassparkle like
diamonds. The answer to
this challenge came with the
invention of lead crystal 300
years ago in England. Lead
crystal is heavier and can be
worked for a ionger period
of time, and it sparkles like
no other man-made materiai.

This invention gave rise
to a whole new industry:
Chandeliers made of lead
crystal. We still enjoy their
sparkling beauty even
though the candles have
now been. replaced by light
bulbs, and many of the cuts

eee
nes

are made by machine.

Bur what abour the
alleged poisonous effects of
lead erystal?

“Yes, the lead is in there,
but it cannot come out; it is
trapped like an clephant ina
bottle.” said Reichert.

She and many others in
the industry believe that, as
the saving goes, it is more
dangerous to cross the street
than to keep the port ina
lead crystal decanter.

The final decision is
yours, but Ede enjoy the
small collection of decanters
I found at auctions during
the height of the lead scare.

Now fet’s look at colored
glass, or the thin layers of
cranberry red or cobalt blue
that are offen seen on vases,
bowls, decanters and glasses.
T once bought one of those
cranberry bow!s (under poor
lighting conditions) and
soon discovered that the red
color was nothing but paint.
Underneath it appeared a
lovely amber-colored howl,

Colored glass is produced
by adding a variety of miner-
als to the molten glass con-
coction. Red comes trom the
addition of gold and copper,
blue from copper and cobalt,
yellow trom cadmium and
uraniun,

These three primary col-
ors are sufficient to create an
endless array of colors. The
combination of colored and
clear glass vccurs when the
formed clear glass is dipped
into the colored mixture and
allowed to harden. Cutting a
pattern then reveals the clear
glass and leaves the glass col-
ored where it has no pattern.

One final point: Diamond
anniversaries are the best
occasion to give or receive
those precious goblets thar
have been hand-engraved
with a diamond point instru-
ment.

Edith Saatkamp practises
and teaches residential design
on the North Shore.

* First month of facal calls free. . a

“Colored
glass is
produced by |
adding a
variety of
minerals to
the molten
glass

concoction.”

AI 3h ete

NEWS photo Terry Peters
EDITH Herzog holds up two different styles of
glassware. The decanter is made of crystal, while
the wine goblet is colored crystai glass.

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