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Author Topic: Murano? Or?  (Read 4363 times)

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Offline kabats

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Murano? Or?
« on: October 12, 2012, 10:13:29 PM »
We recently purchased this vase for what we think is a decent price & we're wondering if anyone here could give us some information about it.  It *appears* to be Murano but does not have the label.  It is 11 inches (28 cm) tall & 6 inches (15.25 cm) diameter.  Any information about origin, maker, age, value range, etc. would really be appreciated.  (Hoping we made a good deal!   ;) )

Thank you!   :)

Offline langhaugh

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #1 on: October 13, 2012, 02:28:16 AM »
Hi and welcome to the GMB.

Very good first post, as I'd say definitely Murano, and a relatively big piece at that. Everything about the vase says older style, zanfirico, the colour, the shape, but it's still hard to date as pieces like this have been made for a fairly long time by a variety of makers.  I'm reluctant to say much about value, as most of us on the GMB are, but this seems like a nice piece.  I look forward to reading what some of the Murano specialists say.

David
My glass collection is at https://picasaweb.google.com/lasilove

Offline bigbri

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #2 on: October 13, 2012, 10:57:47 AM »
big and beautiful.....im no murano specialist but i have 40 or so pieces and from the pics i say zanfirico but could be wrong as there were so many.......its a real beauty though and a great size nice 1 :)

Offline Lustrousstone

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #3 on: October 13, 2012, 02:50:00 PM »
Bri, zanfirico is a technique not a maker

Offline bigbri

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #4 on: October 13, 2012, 03:43:29 PM »
Just testing..............
Sorry about that ill search the maker laters but still it's zanfirico technique I was reading pinas 50s and just tapped away.thats what happens when you multi task as a man,,,,,,,

Offline bigbri

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #5 on: October 15, 2012, 09:19:38 AM »
there no chance i could nail it down to an exact maker i have compared pieces that i have but even ones with different company stickers have extremely close variations in the colours and the zanvirico so i think big beautiful murano zanfirico vase will cover it until someone more knowledgable turns up.sorry best i could do.

Offline MuranoArtGlassChandeliers

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #6 on: October 16, 2012, 10:20:48 AM »
Hi

Zanfirico involves more twisting of the canes but the technique used here is Latticino which is most used in a lattice configuration using thin canes of glass.  It is very difficult to pin it down to a manufacturer / furnace or Maestro.  It could possibly be Toso but very hard to say, however, the technique used in definitely Latticino with 24 carat gold dispersed throughout the base.  A lovely piece.  Here is a description of Zanfirico

This is a glass rod executed with the same procedure as the "murrine". A sheaf of rods of different colours is prepared with a given design, it is heated to the melting point; two metal rods are then attached at the ends of the molten mass while two maestros draw it out and impart a movement of rotation. The fluidity of the material is such that it can be twisted at will to assume its characteristic spiral-like shape inside. This type of object was already known in Murano in the XVI century with the name of "a retortoli " glass. The current name of "zanfirico" is taken from the Venetian nineteenth century dealer Antonio Sanquirico who proposed this process anew.

The attached image clearly shows the Latticino or thin lattice canes and the Zanfirico, which are the thicker twisted canes

Dean
Dean
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Italian Decor Glass Lights
http://www.italiandecor-glasslights.com
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Offline kabats

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #7 on: October 16, 2012, 04:21:49 PM »
Thank you all so much for your replies.  We've liked Murano since we found some pieces at an antique show in Portland, Oregon several years ago.  We now have over 20 pieces but only 1 other piece using a similar technique.  (A very small green & white dish.)  We hadn't seen anything this large or in these colors before so we were not sure if it was authentic or made elsewhere.  We really appreciate knowing more about it. 

It occurs to me that, when joining other message boards, I have posted an introduction...  We live in Vancouver, Washington, USA and started collecting miscellaneous glassware only 6 years ago.  We began with American Depression glass but have since branched out to include many other types.  We now have 5 curio cabinets that are home to over 300 pieces; mostly glass but a few porcelain, ceramic, and silver-plate items as well.  Not all pieces are old or unique but we decided early on to buy pieces we like & can afford, whether it is an inexpensive set of salt & pepper shakers or a 125 year old dish.  Now, with so many pieces, we have no more space so we recently decided to start selling some items in order make space for new ones.  Choosing what pieces to part with can be difficult but we have started looking for a small space in local antique & collectible "malls" and have removed some pieces to sell.  Now that we have some openings in our cabinets, it's time to go glass hunting!   ;)

Here are photos of some of our other Murano pieces.  We are certainly not experts so, if we have been misled by sellers & any of them do not appear to be genuine, feel free to let us know.    :)

___________
Ed & Christine

Offline langhaugh

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Re: Murano? Or?
« Reply #8 on: October 17, 2012, 06:38:26 AM »
Ed, 

Your piece is lovely and it icontains zanfirico. I hope you don't think I'm hijacking your thread if I correct some errors in Dean's post. Because Dean owns a store selling Murano, people might tend to accept his judgment, thus spreading some misinformation.

Dean: Your definition of Zanfirico is spot on, and that's the technique in the original vase. However,  the definition doesn't apply to either of the examples in your photograph. Your definition of zanfirico states, "A sheaf of rods of different colours is prepared..."  White isn't a sheaf of different colours, and a single flattened rod isn't either. The red sections in your photograph are filigrana. 

It's also true that latticino, although now commonly applied  to white lattice work filigrana in the US and, to a lesser extent, in the UK, isn't a Murano term. Here's Edward Schmid in "Advanced Glassworking Techniques" (a book I highly recommend, especially for how zanfirico is made):

"'Latticino' from the Italian latte=milk. 'A style of cane using only white glass color, often twisted creating a lattice effect,' or so we thought. It's a fiction! [emphasis in original] For a long time Americans referred to all cane worked pieces incorrectly as 'lattticino.' Filigrana is really what we're talking about. "

My concern isn't that you use the term latticino for the white sections in the piece in your photograph, it's that you misidentify the other examples of canes in both pieces. The original piece clearly contains zanfirico.

Ed, sorry again. Portland and Seattle are great sources of Murano, btw. I live near Vancouver, BC and try to get down there regularly.

David

My glass collection is at https://picasaweb.google.com/lasilove

 

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