Murano Glass Filigree

Murano glass filigree, also known as 'vetro a fili' or 'filigranato', is a decorative style characterized by the inclusion of opaque, white, or colored glass rods within transparent glass. This technique was first experimented with in Murano during the 16th century. In 1527, Filippo Catani patented the 'zanfirico' or twisted filigree, where opaque rods are intertwined to form spiral motifs. The process involves placing lattimo rods on a cast iron plate, sometimes alternating with colored rods, before gathering and marbling them.

A variant of filigree is the 'reticello' glass, featuring an internal decoration resembling a fine net with a small air bubble in each lozenge formed by the intersecting rods. The 'vetro a fili' style, realized by Venini, involves decorating plates, vases, and lamps with a series of parallel thin filaments. In the 1950s and 60s, master Archimede Seguso created filigrees using a special technique for preparing and grinding the glass rods.

Although some foreign authors mistakenly use terms like 'latticino' or 'lace glass' as synonyms for filigree, the technique's origins can be traced back to Roman glass from 100 BC to 100 AD. Thanks to Murano glassmakers, filigree spread worldwide, including Europe, the United States, and China. In English, it is commonly referred to as 'filigree', but terms like 'threaded glass', 'lace glass', 'muslin glass', and 'cotton glass' are also used. In French, it is 'verre filigrane', and in German, 'Fadenglas'.