Man-made glass

man-made glass

Man-made glass is the oldest imitation of gemstone. It is also one of the easiest to identify.

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Indeed, its low hardness, its luster, its cleavage, low temperature melting point, and its inclusions are very different from the stones that it seeks to imitate. It is a poor imitation of stone. Nowadays, there are still large quantities  of man-made glass in the fashion jewelry industry. It represents a larger market than natural gemstones in terms of quantities and money also.

History

We found Made-man glass back to 3500 BC in Mesopotamia. However, they may have been producing second-rate copies of glass objects from Egypt, where this complex craft originated. Other archaeological evidence suggests that the first true glass was made in coastal north Syria, Mesopotamia or Egypt.

The earliest known glass objects, of the mid second millennium BC, were beads. Perhaps initially created as the accidental by-products of metal-working. Or during the production of faience. A pre-glass vitreous material made by a process similar to glazing. Glass products remained a luxury until the disasters that overtook the late Bronze Age civilizations. Seemingly brought glass-making to a halt.

Development of glass technology in India may have begun in 1730 BC. In ancient China, though, glass-making seems to have had a late start compared to ceramics and metal work. From across the former Roman Empire archaeologists have recovered glass objects.

Man-made glass in jewelry

They use it in domestic, also industrial and funerary contexts. We found anglo-saxon glass across England. During archaeological excavations of both settlement and cemetery sites. In the Anglo-Saxon period they used glass in the manufacture of a range of objects. It includes vessels, also beads, windows and jewelry.

In the 5th century AD with the Roman departure from Britain. There were also considerable changes in the usage of glass. Excavation of Romano-British sites have revealed plentiful amounts of glass. But, in contrast, the amount recovered from 5th century. And later Anglo-Saxon sites is minuscule.

The majority of complete vessels and assemblages of beads come from the excavations of early Anglo-Saxon cemeteries. But a change in burial rites in the late 7th century affected the recovery of glass. As christian anglo-saxons were buried with fewer grave goods. And glass is rarely found. From the late 7th century onwards, window glass is found more frequently.

This is directly related to the introduction of Christianity. And the construction of churches and monasteries. There are a few Anglo-Saxon ecclesiastical literary sources that mention the production. And use of glass, although these relate to window glass used in ecclesiastical buildings. Anglo-Saxons used glass in their jewelry. Both as enamel or as cut glass insets.

Man-made glass

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