Original work

Hexagonal Murano Tipetto with Architectural Crown Stem

850 €

This exquisite tipetto or gala chalice of Murano art glassware, standing twenty-five centimeters high, constitutes a masterpiece of unsurpassed technical virtuosity executed through mouth-blown crystal (vetro soffiato) in a vibrant, translucent ruby-red color. The piece is distinguished by its singular flared and faceted hexagonal bowl, whose conical base is embraced by hot-applied vertical ribs densely impregnated with 24-karat gold leaf inclusions (foglia d'oro) set upon a crimped collar (morisa increspata). Its stem, displaying daring and dazzling architectural complexity hot-modeled at the furnace (a mano volante), is configured as an openwork cage or crown formed by four majestic scrolled handles (ansette a voluta) in ruby red glass enriched with pincered gold leaf crests (creste dentellate), encircling a central ribbed knop (nodo a costolature) charged with gold inclusions and resting upon an elegant teardrop baluster in ruby crystal. Diamond-point signed "Elite Murano" on its base and dating from the second half of the 20th century, the work directly connects to the sumptuary tradition of the Most Serene Republic of Venice, emulating the fabulous display chalices of patrician tables and of the Doge himself, whose strict courtly etiquette demanded the presentation of glass vessels of extreme complexity as the ultimate symbol of power, wealth, and refinement, sparking fierce emulation among the maestri vetrai to supply the European high aristocracy. Exemplars of similar typological rigor and compositional virtuosity are preserved in the world's most prestigious museum institutions, such as the Museo del Vetro in Murano, the Museo Correr in Venice, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Its immaculate state of preservation, combined with the presence of the workshop signature, its extraordinary faceted hexagonal rim, and the dazzling glass goldsmithing of its stem, positions this goblet at the apex of international Murano glass collecting.

TechniqueGlass soplado a boca, facetada hexagonal, oro de 24K, nudo acanalado, jaula de volutas, crestas dentadas y modelado en caliente

Dimensions25cm

YearCirca 1970

ArtistMURANO, Maestri Vetrai di

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MURANO, Maestri Vetrai di

The history of the master glassmakers of Murano (Maestri Vetrai di Murano) traces its roots back to the 8th century in the Venetian Lagoon, although their institutional status and artistic monopoly were permanently established in 1291 when the Great Council of the Most Serene Republic enacted the historic decree requiring the relocation of all melting furnaces to the island of Murano to prevent fires in the city center and, above all, to safeguard the formulation, melting, and shaping techniques of glass under strict state secrecy. From that moment, the maestri vetrai enjoyed exceptional social privileges, such as the prerogative to marry into patrician nobility and the right to carry a sword, while remaining subject to an absolute ban on leaving the Republic without official authorization, under severe penalties meant to preserve the Venetian commercial advantage over the rest of Europe. During the Renaissance, the island's technical genius reached its zenith with the invention of cristallo around 1450 by master Angelo Barovier, a revolutionary formula of absolute clarity that eliminated iron impurities to match the purity of natural rock crystal. Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, the workshops developed an unparalleled technical repertoire that included filigree (reticello and zanfirico) using glass rods with opaque threads twisted into complex geometric patterns, calcedonio and lattimo compositions to simulate jasper, agate, or the opalescence of Oriental porcelain, and virtuoso hot-working (a mano volante) using pincers (borselle) and relief molds (a mezza stampatura) to sculpt ornate stems adorned with acanthus volutes, mascarons, and mythological creatures for the famed tipetti. Within the courtly etiquette of the Republic and European royalty, Murano glassware represented the pinnacle of sumptuary luxury, exemplified by the Doge of Venice's custom of using a different goblet at every banquet as a symbol of boundless wealth, which sparked fierce competition among the various fornaci to supply the aristocracy and the Habsburg, Valois, and Medici dynasties. Following the dissolution of traditional guilds in the late 18th century, the craft experienced a dramatic revival in the mid-19th century through figures such as Vincenzo Zanetti and Antonio Salviati, paving the way for a 20th century in which historical and high-end firms like Venini, Barovier & Toso, Archimede Seguso, and Elite Murano fused avant-garde design language with the rigorous execution of ancient artisans. In the international high-end auction circuit, featuring premier houses such as Christie's, Sotheby's, Pandolfini, Wright, and Phillips, the works of Venetian masters achieve extraordinary valuations due to the inimitability of their manual techniques, the extreme scarcity of unique or limited-run pieces, and the significant market premium awarded to examples preserved in immaculate condition. Today, the most important collections representing this sculptural and decorative lineage are preserved in the world's most prestigious museum institutions, including the Museo del Vetro in Murano, the Museo Correr in Venice, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Berlin, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and the Museo Poldi Pezzoli in Milan.