Venice has been an influential centre of glass production since c. ad 450, although the glasshouses moved from the city itself to the nearby island of Murano c. 1290. Early wares were opaque, including beakers and beads, but with the development of clear cristallo in the 15thC, Venetian glass came to dominate the European market. Elegant wine glasses with elaborate surface decoration (façon de Venise) were particularly popular, and were widely copied throughout Europe. Venetian glass-makers led the field in making vividly coloured glassware, and played an important part in developing millefiori and latticing techniques. When lead crystal, with its greater strength and clarity, began to be developed in Britain in the late 17thC, the Venetian glass industry went into decline, but was revived in the late 19thC.
Venetian glass is a type of glass object made in Venice, Italy, primarily on the island of Murano. It is world-renowned for being colorful, elaborate, and skilfully made.
