1387 – 1/2  col.

Covered goblet, probably Swedish, Kungsholmen glasshouse, about 1680–1693. Formerly in a Westphalian glass collection (Elisabeth Osthoff, letter to the Corning Museum of Glass, June 1966).

1474 – 11/2  col.

Beaker with allegories of love, detail, Silesia, Riesengebirge (Giant Mountains), early Eighteenth Century, colorless, with grayish purplish tinge. Formerly in the Eigel collection.

1 1/2  col. 1384 – (if too many for 1 page, drop this one)

Mortar and pestle, probably Amsterdam, perhaps Seventeenth Century. Gift of the Wunsch Foundation Inc to the Corning Museum of Glass.

1388 – 1 col.

Flask for ethereal oils (Nassa), Italy, Tuscany, Seventeenth Century, colorless, with yellowish green tinge; some bubbles; blown, applied, combed.

1395 – 1 col.

Gold ruby goblet, Brandenburg (Germany), Potsdam, probably engraved by Gottfried Spiller, about 1690–1700. Gift of the Ruth Bryan Strauss Memorial Foundation to the Corning Museum of Glass.

1383 – 1 col.

Jug with Nipt-Diamond-Waies, England, London, possibly Savoy Glasshouse, about 1680.

1386 – 1 col

Footed beaker with cover, Brandenburg (Germany), Potsdam, dark gold ruby, blown, cut, circa 1720–1735. Formerly in the collection of Jerome Strauss, gift of Jerome Strauss to the Corning Museum of Glass.

MUST RUN 6-20

MYSTERY OF ALCHEMY AT CORNING MUSEUM . cuts

ak/lsb set 6/13 #742500

CORNING, N.Y. — The impact of alchemy on glass is explored in “Glass of the Alchemists: Lead Crystal-Gold Ruby, 1650–1750,” opening at the Corning Museum of Glass on June 27. The exhibition highlights the newly understood role of Seventeenth Century “chymists” in laying the foundation for modern material science. Often dismissed during their lifetimes as mere charlatans, their contributions to the creation of colorless lead crystal and gold ruby have been overlooked.

Drawn extensively from the Corning Museum of Glass collection, the exhibition brings together 117 objects from eight international lenders, with 87 from the museum’s collection. The exhibition is curated by Dedo von Kerssenbrock-Krosigk, curator of European glass, the Corning Museum of Glass, and will be on view through January 4.

Alchemists traveled widely throughout northern Europe, interacting with glassmakers and disseminating their knowledge of material science and glass production. In some cases, they also turned to glassmaking themselves, serving as a link between glassmakers in disparate regions of Europe and as far away as Asia. This connection accounts for the rather unlikely, and nearly simultaneous, appearance of crystal glass in baroque glassworks across Europe.

Often interpreted as accidents, the innovations of the alchemists were actually deliberate experiments that provided an unexpected foundation for today’s material sciences. Through experiments that simulated natural processes, this early stage of chemistry explored the basic natural sciences and technology of materials (metal, glass, ceramics and their raw components). The knowledge gained was decisive in the discovery of colorless lead crystal in the 1670s and gold ruby glass a decade later.

The exhibition introduces some of the unconventional scientists involved in these experiments and the resulting legacy of their ideas and travels. Seen as a potential way to imitate nature, alchemy’s mysterious methods of transforming materials were crucial in the development of new ways of investigating nature. Alchemists were brought to noble courts to live and work in the hopes that they could harness untold riches from their experiments.

Johann Rudolf Glauber (1604–1670, Germany; lived in Amsterdam) is considered one of the first, and most influential, chemists. He is credited with inventing a solution of gold that led to the production of gold ruby glass.

In the early 1670s, two major glassmakers, Johan da Costa and Jor Odacio, emigrated from the Netherlands. Da Costa moved to England and Odacio to Ireland. It is believed that both were familiar with Glauber’s work, which they built upon to ultimately create the formula for lead crystal.

Glauber’s assistant, Johann Daniel Crafft (1624–1697), is credited with circulating new techniques and ideas that were central to many baroque glassmaking developments. A craftsman as well as chemist, Crafft introduced opaque white glass to northern Europe and worked with many influential chemists and craftsmen.

Johann Kunckel (1637(?)–1702) worked with Crafft in Dresden, and was the first to actually produce gold ruby vessels using Glauber’s formulas. Crafft also worked with Jesuit priest and glassmaker Christoph Diem (1636–?), who in turn trained Kilian Stumpf (1655–1720). Stumpf provided the link with Asia: he was a missionary to China in the 1680s and, while there, organized the palace glassworks in Beijing, extending the influence and innovations of European alchemists across the globe.

The exhibition begins with a replica of an alchemist’s workshop, showcasing the mysterious nature of the space from the raw elements used in experiments to the laboratory equipment employed in the alchemists’ work.

A series of glass vessels demonstrates the many variations of color tinges that were produced in the attempt to achieve perfectly colorless glass. Objects are displayed by region, from the British Isles through central Europe.

A dazzling display of gold ruby objects include a late Seventeenth Century goblet with an ornately detailed frieze of putti cavorting on a scrolling grapevine. This display stands in the center of the show, giving the impression of the baroque concept of treasure and “Wunder” chambers.

The last section of the exhibition showcases marvelous examples of Asian glass, including the renowned “Warrior Vase,” with its sumptuous decoration of cut ruby glass.

The Corning Museum is at One Museum Way. For information, www.cmog.org or 607-974-8470.