VASE

It might be said that a complete and satisfactory of glass vase making in Italy still remain to written- a history which would clarify all obscurities, cover all the major and minor centers in which the art of glass vase blowing was carried on. Define all the varying local trends and specialties, and out line the commercial ties that existed with other countries. It is quite true that the origins and development t of the art of glass vase blowing were chiefly centered round Murano, a name which, at a certain point, became famous not only throughout the various regions of the Peninsula, but all over Europe, attracting the attention of experts everywhere. But it is also certain that glass vase workshops existed and flourished in other places besides the Venetian Lagoon. It will be enough to mention the name of Altare, a small village in Liguria, almost unknown yet the source of works of art and artists who spread Italian taste everywhere, especially in France and Flanders. Some very active workshop also flourished in many parts of Tuscany, including Florence itself. As for southern Italy, we know that the Neapolitan establishments were very successful, especially during the 16th and 17th centuries. In northern Italy, apart from Liguria, signs of activity are found in Lombardy, in Veneto and possibly elsewhere.

Unfortunately, there is not enough precise documentary and, above all, material evidence to testify in detail to the activity of the various centers, and so enables us accurately to reconstruct the whole history of glass vase blowing.

This demands a close search among the archives, together with a study of the centers of production and of the various written documents, whereby the origin of the various vases now extant can be established with greater accuracy.