It’s no secret that I’m crazy about blown glass. You likely got that feeling if you read my recent blog on the Corning Glass Museum in upstate New York.
But if you’re a serious glass-lover, there is nothing to compare with a visit to the island of Murano in the Venetian Lagoon, just a short water taxi ride from Venice. For us on a November trip a few years ago, it came as a recommendation from our lovely little Venetian hotel. We knew the free taxi ride meant there would be an expectation of purchase from the designated glass factory, but we felt confident we could resist any high-pressured sales tactics. Besides, it was a lovely, cloudy late November day: perfect for a trip to the glass-blowing capital of the world. So into the water taxi we went and soon we were motoring under the Rio Alto bridge.
If you’ve been to Venice, you know what fun it is to ride on its “main drag”, the historic Grand Canal lined with spectacular palazzos and alive with all kinds of barges and sleek water craft.
It’s fun to stand in the vaporettos or taxis, as Doug did, and watch the scenery go by.
Taxi drivers in Venice need to be very skilled. We were warned in advance to duck as we went under the low bridge ahead.
But November on the Adriatic is not very warm, so we soon retreated with our red noses into the comfy interior of the water taxi.
With Venice in our rear view, we were now sailing through the choppy Venetian lagoon – essentially a bay in the Adriatic Sea – on our way to Murano.
The rising water in the sea and the lagoon are giving Venice city officials much to worry about, with elaborate engineering fixes in the works to keep the place above ground. Needless to say, global warming is a very palpable threat here – but perhaps not if you’re a barge operator on the lagoon……
Or bringing passengers from the airport in a sleek taxi.
We docked at Murano and our driver escorted us to our appointment at the Fornace CAM (CAM Furnace). As we took in the view in the lobby of the ornate chandeliers and the spectacular glass horse of renowned glass masterPino Signoretto, we jingled the few euros in our pockets rather nervously.
For the next hour or so, we were treated to an interesting tour that started in the furnace area watching glass blowers who had been doing this for most of their lives….
…often, in families where glass-blowing was a way of life for generations.
Others were just starting their careers.
Then we toured the showrooms, beginning with the most expensive floor and working our way down to the lowest level, where a pair of cufflinks wasn’t outrageously expensive. I am not a fan of the baroque or highly ornate, but a half-dozen, modern, gilt-edged water glasses on a middle floor took my breath away. And bless him, my dear husband decided that those would be our very special Murano souvenirs (the price being somewhere between a set of china and several bottles of the very best Venetian Amarone!) We arranged the shipping details (and they made it safely to Canada and are ensconced in my china cabinet, below), after which we were finally released outdoors to continue our own tour of the island.
We paused to look down on the boats parked at the piers, and the people going about their business on this island (which is really a series of small islands connected by footbridges), population around 5,000.
The buildings have the same colourful charm as those of Venice.
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Here’s the view of the Ponte San Martino, one of many bridges on Murano.
Like Venice, the moist, salty air eventually takes its toll on the plaster and brick mortar – albeit in a very picturesque way.
We spent an hour visiting the Murano Glass Museum, the Museo del Vetro (where no photos are permitted) and explored exhibits of glass-making and glass-blowing from ancient times to modern techniques. And we learned glass-blowing terminology – words like former, flux, stabilizer and colourant. The long history of glass-making here in Murano, of course, goes hand in hand with the history of Venice. I thought back to the 14th century Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale) we toured yesterday and the spectacular chandeliers hanging there.
Returning outdoors, it was fun to gaze at the windows with their assortment of glass objects, like this incredible chess set…..
…and these colour-coordinated pieces of tableware and jewelry.
I was especially intrigued to see a pretty jeweler working with her glass beads to make all kinds of beautiful little treasures, so different from many of the mass-manufactured, cheap glass trinkets to be found in Murano souvenir shops. We walked inside and chatted with her. Her name was Marinella Bubacco and she spent time showing us how she created her wares.
And that is how I ended up with a lovely glass necklace for Christmas one month later.
We walked on, entering the Church of Santa Maria and San Donato, a 12th Century Veneto-Byzantine church restored rather ungracefully between 1858-1873. As befits the church of glass-blowing families, the holy water font is unique in its design.
We passed this little shrine on the outside of a building, and I smiled to note that Mary, flanked by pots of flowers, had been assigned a special name by the Murano faithful: the Madonnina dei Vetrai (the Madonna of the glassmakers).
Pots of flowers on balconies are pretty much the only “gardens” the Muranese can grow, given the scarcity of land on the island.
Strolling along a small canal, we saw an extraordinary sculpture in the distance, reminding me of the various Chihuly glass pieces one sees in gardens around the world now.
It is Simone Cenedese’s Comet Glass Star, an impressive, permanent installation.
Suddenly we realized that all this touring and walking had taken a toll and we found a little osteria where the local labourers were just finishing their lunch. But the cucina was still open, and we savoured a bottle of 2006 Venetian Primofiore and bowls of mouth-wateringly delicious pasta: spaghetti carbonara for la signora and fresh clams for le signor.
And as we took the public ferry from Murano back to Venice, the November sun was sinking low in the sky. The perfect end to a perfect afternoon.
