I really appreciated seeing the manufacture of Roman style glass at close quarters. It is so much more vivid than watching a film or listening to a lecture. The following week I popped into the V&A to look at their collection and I could visualise how the objects were made and what they felt like.
The Skills and Secrets of Ancient Glass Making
- Demonstrations of ancient glassmaking methods
- The history of glass from its first manufacture out of base materials
- Experiments in ancient technology - opportunity to see Roman glass manufacture
Guide Lecturers
Introduction
Glass is a mysterious, beautiful and versatile material, not a true solid but a ‘super-cooled liquid’, and scientists still don’t completely understand its exact nature. It comes from cheap and plentiful ingredients – sand, natron and plant ash – which are transformed into exquisite transparency and an infinite variety of forms. The Romans in particular became masters of mass-produced glass, cracking the secret that allowed them to produce blown glass vessels for all.
Denise has studied Roman glass for many years, and she will explain the extraordinarily long history of glass from earliest times. She will also introduce you to the work of the expert glassmakers who have learnt how to reproduce the glass made not only in the Roman period but over a period of more than 4000 years from ancient Egyptian to post-Medieval English vessels.
There will be glass-making demonstrations, and the chance to examine all aspects of the ancient craft at close hand. The remains of a replica Roman furnace, made for a series of experiments replicating ancient technology, can be seen in the grounds of the workshop, and you will hear how the results of these experiments have informed us about how the industry might have worked.
Itinerary
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