The History of Hand-Blown Stained Glass

All stained glass was originally hand-made.

The history of stained glass is a long and mysterious one. Prior to the invention of technologies that allowed glass to be machine-made, all glass was either molded or hand-blown.

Time Frame

The earliest man-made glass originates more than 2,000 years before the Roman Empire. Craftsmen in Mesopotamia and Egypt were making little vessels from brightly colored glass as early as 1,500 B.C. Stained glass in England was mentioned in the 1600s. In the eighth century, an alchemist named Jabir ibn Hayyan wrote a treatise on colored glass. By the 12th century, hand-blown stained glass was a sophisticated form of art.

Theories/Speculation

The origin of glass itself is mysterious. It is not clear exactly how hand-blown stained glass windows arose. It is surmised that they evolved from mosaics made from glass or colored stones, which may have been translucent.

Considerations

There were two main procedures for making flat glass panels before the advent of modern technology. One was to cast the glass in a mold. Opacity was a problem in such flat-cast glass. Another technique was to blow the glass, then spin the pipe rapidly so that centrifugal force pulled the glass into an expanding disk of flat glass.

References

• Southern Utah University: Glassmaking in Antiquity
• The Stained Glass Museum: A Brief History of Stained Glass
• History of Science and Technology in Islam: The Book of the Hidden Pearl
• Stained Glass and Hobby Store Finder: A History of Stained Glass
• Art History with Michelli: Historic Stained Glass

Resources

• The Stained Glass Museum