Ice-glass Beaker
Ice-glass Beaker
Place of Originprobably Venice, Italy or Southern Netherlands
Dateabout 1550-1600
Dimensions8 3/8 in. (21.3 cm)
Mediumglass
ClassificationGlass
Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number
1913.423
Not on View
DescriptionColorless glass with grayish tinge; blown, ice-glass technique, applied, stamped.
Label Text“Ice glass” represents a novel glassmaking technique that may have been inspired by a fascination with ice and the accompanying vogue for serving chilled foods in 16th-century Renaissance Italy (see also the silver beaker with a chased pattern resembling condensation drops, displayed nearby). The fractured appearance of the vessel’s surface was achieved by dipping the initial hot glass bubble into water. The resulting thermal shock caused the surface to form deep stress cracks. When the glass was further inflated and shaped, the cracks expanded to produce the jagged appearance of cracked ice.Published ReferencesPage, Jutta-Annette, The Art of Glass: Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio, Toledo Museum of Art, 2006, p. 100, fig. 39A, repr. (col.) p. 101.Exhibition HistoryMr. Ray Erret, Corning, N.Y. 1969.
Libbey Glass Company, a subsidiary of Owens-Illinois Glass Company
1939
about 375-550
Late 3rd to mid-4th century CE
13th century
Sixth to early seventh centuries
4th century CE
2nd-3rd century CE
1697
Membership
Become a TMA member today
Support TMA
Help support the TMA mission