Paperweight c. 19th century

This paperweight was made at the Clichy Glasshouse in France during the 19th century, and it's an excellent example of the millefiori technique. The name "millefiori" means "a thousand flowers" in Italian, and that’s exactly what you see here: a dense field of tiny, colorful glass blossoms suspended in clear crystal. Each of these miniature florets was made individually, by heating and manipulating glass canes of different colors. These were then bundled together and fused to create a cross-section pattern. The glassblower then arranges these pre-formed components in a mold and encases them in clear glass, resulting in this mesmerizing composition. Paperweights like this one were highly prized objects during the Victorian era. Their production required a great deal of skill and labor, and the resulting objects were seen as both beautiful and functional. The Clichy Glasshouse was renowned for the quality and intricacy of its millefiori designs. Looking closely you can appreciate the incredible detail and the precision required to create such a complex and captivating object. It is an exquisite demonstration of how craft and industry converged in the 19th century.