Satin-finish blown glass refreshment jug with ice reservoir, Murano, late 19th century

Beautiful carafe in blown, partially satin-finished glass. The finely fluted, pyriform body is adorned with a spiral, opaline yellow band inlaid into the body. The finely twisted side handle simulates a knotted rope. It wraps around the neck and is supported on the body by floral lozenges. A secondary cord features a heat-applied decorative flange.

This model is distinguished by the rare presence of a ventral ice pocket blown into the body, allowing liquids to be refreshed without diluting them - a subtle invention characteristic of the refinement of tableware in the Belle Époque.

This typology appeared at major international exhibitions from the 1870s onwards, notably in Paris and Vienna, where Murano glassworks vied with each other in reinterpreting ancient forms in a spirit of technical virtuosity. The combination of satin-finish opaline glass, twisted filigree and double-walled blowing fully reflects this neo-Renaissance revival promoted by houses such as FRATELLI TOSO and SALVIATI.

Equivalent pieces are sometimes attributed to the house of BACCARAT, given the presence of ice-pocket jugs in their catalogs around 1900. However, the nature of the satin-finish blown glass, the heat applications and the ornamental vocabulary of this piece rule out this hypothesis, and confirm a Venetian origin, probably Muranese.
Two brocades bearing a striking resemblance to our own can be found in the BACCARAT heritage collections[1], and were presented at the Baccarat la légende du cristal exhibition at the Petit Palais[2].

[1] Ice brooch, circa 1860. Blown clear crystal, hot-formed pocket, twisted handle. H.27.2 cm. Baccarat, heritage collection.
Ice brooch, Exposition Universelle deParis, 1867. Blown pink crystal, twisted clear crystal handle. H.29,7 cm. Baccarat, heritage collection.
[2] Baccarat, la légende du cristal, Petit Palais Musée des Beaux-Arts de la ville de Paris, October 15, 2014 - January 4, 2015.

Height: 30 cm

No mark. Attributable to the MURANO workshops.


Condition report
Excellent condition. No chips or splinters.

Ref: NS6G74BT55