Tea at Trianon: The Beauty of Murano Glass

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, August 10, 2018

The Beauty of Murano Glass

From Victoria:

Since its founding in 1295, Barovier & Toso has emerged as an influential producer of Murano glass. Originally begun by the Barovier family, the business’s narrative spans generations and has weathered everything from war to changes in taste and style. Angelo Barovier revolutionized the industry with his innovative clear crystal around 1450; five hundred years later, descendant Ercole Barovier’s distinctive designs further enhanced the enterprise’s preeminent reputation, a standing that continues to this day.

Forty or so glassworkers—glass masters, their assistants, and others involved in production and assembly—ply their trade at the Barovier & Toso factory. Becoming a master takes a considerable time, an on-the-job learning experience that lasts for years. Here, a glass master makes a gilded leaf, which will adorn a chandelier; the leaf will be transferred to a low-temperature oven before it can be joined with its counterparts. Gleaming elements of the Taif chandelier, which is produced in an array of colors, await assembly. (Read more.)