After the great Venice fire of 1483, all of the glassblowers of Venice and their furnaces were evicted onto the island of Murano, which was already established for more than 100 years as a centre for glassblowing.
It’s considered it was the proximity of all the furnaces on the small island, created an atmosphere of high secrecy. Many of the techniques that were developed were unique to the houses and families, as well as Murano itself.
By 1568, it was illegal to leave the island without formal permission, for fear of secrets being leaked. Even as recently as the 1930s, when the technique of Sommerso was invented, the island was thrown into intrigue, gossip and power struggles as to who exactly came up with it.
Today, most of the glass manufactured on the island is just known as Murano glass. But a handful of the leading houses such as Vennini, Seguso Tagliapietraa, Mazzega and Torso, to name a few, still sign their work.
Murano is undoubtedly the world’s leading source of beautiful glassware and we are proud to present some of its finest, through Heart Of Glass Berrima.