Soda & Lime, a Murano Cristallo Chandelier

Murano Cristallo

The cluster of small islands interlinked by bridges in the Venetian Lagoon has been regarded since the 11th century as the home of some of the finest glass product in the world. As the city state of Venice established itself as a major trading port in the 5th century, glassmakers from the ancient Roman city of Aquileia fled the onslaught of the Barbarians and sought refuge in Murano.

Early products included glass beads, mirrors, mosaics, jewellery and window glass, but grew as Venice’s economy expanded. The glassmakers of Murano were the first to fuse soda (sodium carbonate) with lime (calcium oxide) to create cristallo, glass that is absolute clear. It is to these artisans that we owe the invention of the glass chandelier and to them over 1,500 years later that we turn to for the highest quality bespoke chandeliers for our projects.

Working with the artisans of Murano, our design team depend of that ancient knowledge to give life to theses four stunning bespoke chandeliers in the home of our clients. Crafting the shape and arrangements of the cristallo pendants to determine the refraction effects and warmth of the space is at the heart of each of our bespoke chandeliers.

The design team, led by Joe our Creative Director, makes regular trips to our glassmakers workshops to ensure the desired qualities of the cristallo pendants are achieved. So passionate is he about realising the full beauty of four unique pieces in a recent project that he personally oversaw their installation onsite.