Since about the
X-XI centuries, the fascination with colored glass in China began to decline,
but the technology of local glass production continued to improve. At the same
time, the casting technique continued to dominate, although already in the Tang
era (618-907), craftsmen mastered the method of producing blown glass.
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| Chinese Biyanhu Snuff Box |
Glass production
underwent the most dramatic change at the turn of the 17th – 18th centuries
when in 1696 Emperor Kansi-si (1662–1722) established a court workshop, responsible for glass production, in Beijing. The result was a “revolution” related
to the perception of European experience instilled in the Chinese masters by
Western Jesuit missionaries who were curators of the palace glass workshops.
Until the middle of the XVIII century, only small glass objects (for example,
biyanhu snuff-boxes) were produced at the court, the quantity of which was very
limited. So, in the Beijing Gugong Museum, only one thing from the glass with
the Kansi brand is stored, twelve with the Yong-zheng brands (1723-1735) and
hundreds of glassware with the Qian-lung marks (1736-1795). In content and
composition, brands on the glass are close to brands on modern to them enamels
on metal and porcelain.
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| Glazed Horseshoe - New Hotel in China |
It is known that
during the Qian-lung years, glass production in China reached previously
unprecedented heights, although, according to experts, only about 60 marked
things of this period do not raise doubts about authenticity. Among glass
products for household and ritual purposes (chalices, plates, as well as vases,
incense burners and candle holders included in altar sets), works of multilayer
colored glass with embossed carvings, or things made of frosted or transparent
monochrome glass (amber-yellow, blue, turquoise or green color of celadon
shade). In multilayer colored glass, high relief was common, while in
monochrome, very low (“shadow”) relief and fine engraving were used, which
during this period could be done with a special wheel cutter or a diamond
needle.
