Is this Murano Glass authentic?

July 6, 2007 8:38 AM

How to tell if a piece of murano glass is authentic and even if its a good gift idea for a retirement present for my uncle?

He sure loves his ornaments but in 25 years of collecting (what seem to me to be arbitrary) pieces of glassware I still don't know what he likes.

Please help a gift-challenged nephew!

posted by johoney to shopping (6 comments total)

Murano glass is cool to the touch. Acrylic knockoffs aren't. Poorer but wiser, me.
posted by infinitewindow at 9:25 AM on July 6, 2007

I think most Murano glass is now made in China, or other places that aren't Murano.

I know that the San Francisco Bay Area has a lot of local artists who do glassblowing; I'd imagine New York does as well. Are there local galleries where you could go find him something unique and local, rather than trying to hunt down a piece that's "authentic"? I tend to find those unique, artistic pieces more interesting, especially, I would guess, to collectors.
posted by occhiblu at 9:35 AM on July 6, 2007

When I was in Murano, I visited a glass factory and told me to look for the "authentic Murano/Venetian glass" sticker on pieces to make sure they weren't street-vendor knockoffs. I don't know if this is the case everywhere, but the nicer pieces on the island seemed all to have the magical sticker while a curiousity-check of some street vendors revealed stickerless glass. This may not be helpful at all if the tradition is restricted to Murano itself, however.
posted by Rallon at 11:19 AM on July 6, 2007

The gold foil seal is being replaced by holographic numbering (via.)
posted by misha at 12:57 PM on July 6, 2007

I still don't know what he likes

Perhaps a gift certificate to a local gallery specializing in glass art would be a better choice. If their is an artist nearby who opens their studio to the public for demonstrations, you might be able to visit there with him and buy a present for him there.

If he has an eclectic enough collection that you can't generalize what he likes, he probably won't like most Murano glass. What seems arbitrary to you is probably carefully selected pieces. Murano is mass produced, the kind of thing you buy to let people know how much money you spent.
posted by yohko at 1:31 PM on July 6, 2007

Of course, if all his ornaments are Murano, go ahead and buy.
posted by yohko at 1:32 PM on July 6, 2007