Pressed glass

Pressed glass is produced by placing a batch of hot glass in a metal mould, usually made up of several parts, and pressing it into this mould with a plunger. This is distinct from objects with partly similar, but usually less sharply defined decorative motifs, for which glass is blown into a mould (French: moule) from a glass blowing pipe. In French descriptions of the techniques, verre pressé-moulé is often referred to, thus elegantly circumventing the often difficult distinction between the two techniques. The assessment of these techniques is further complicated by fact that glass was also pressed into metal moulds using compressed air (so called Pompe Robinet).

Pressed glass is an invention dating to the early 19th century. It makes it possible to produce glass of exactly the same shape in large numbers and to decorate its surfaces in a way that would not be possible with other techniques, or only with a great deal of work. The three opaque red objects on display here serve as an example (please select more information below). The sharply detailed decoration could otherwise only be achieved with glass cutting and carving techniques.

There is an invaluable source for the identification and dating of early French examples of pressed glass. There are two catalogues by Launay Hautin & Cie. from 1840 and 1841, a company with its headquarters on the Rue de Paradis in Paris. It distributed products from several glassworks, notably those of Baccarat and Saint-Louis. The glasses are reproduced as meticulously executed lithographs, all of which are to a consistent scale for each piece. As an example of the accuracy of the drawings, here are three sample objects and the corresponding illustrations in the catalogue of 1840.