Scotland's Glass  2010

Four hundred years on, and the anniversary of the patent to make glass in Scotland is being celebrated across Scotland. Learn more about the history and the events this year .
James VI and I conferred on Sir George Hay the patent to make glass in Scotland in 1610, a new industry was born. Hay, a serial entrepreneur and a court favourite, was taking a big risk in setting up this business. Although all the ingredients required to make glass were readily available in Scotland - wood or coal to fire the furnaces, sand and kelp (which helped to make the sand melt) - there were no glassmakers in the country and it was a luxury commodity which he hoped to sell in one of Europe's poorest countries. But Hay was not to be put off by such small considerations. He already owned iron furnaces, some set at Loch Maree where he may have sited his first glass furnaces, and was not a man afraid of a challenge.

His first task was to find men to make the glass. For centuries, Venetians had kept their glass makers, and their secrets, safe on the island of Murano. However, during the 16th century, increasing numbers had escaped the island and made their way across Europe. By 1610, a number were working in London, brought over from mainland Europe at considerable expense by English businessmen. It is some measure of Hay's efficiency that the Venetian Ambassador in London wrote ruefully in 1622 that most of his countrymen brought into London to make glass had moved north.

At this time, glass was a luxury item. In Scotland, only royalty could afford glass windows in their houses, and few others possessed even a single table glass. From the start, Hay looked to the wealthiest Scots to buy his wares. His workers quickly learned to make crown glass: circles of glass that were then cut to make small panes for windows. It was not long before the Venetian master glass makers had also taught his workforce how to make simple wine glasses. Within a few years they were also making bottles so successfully that English makers petitioned parliament in protest at Scottish bottles flooding the market.

Hay died in 1634, by which time he had been made earl of Kinnoull by Charles I. His early vision had encouraged others to open glass furnaces and Scotland was producing glass of high quality for her noble families. Of course, one can scour museums today and not find a single example of Hay's output. There are early glasses to be found, and some may have been made in his furnaces, but we will never know for sure.
By the end of the 17th century, the glass industry was firmly established in Scotland. As the nation prospered and glass makers increased their output, the fruits of their labours became available to more people. Glass was still only purchased by the upper and the richest of the middle classes, but surviving records show wealthy farmers buying sets of wine glasses from local makers and bottle making, mainly centred around the port of Leith, flourished as the demand for foreign wines grew.

As Glasgow began to prosper, so did glass makers in the west. The first bottle factory opened there to great success at the beginning of the 18th century and it was not long before fine table ware was also being produced in the city. The great building programme of Edinburgh's New Town, which was emulated in many other cities, fuelled the need for glass. People needed windows, mirrors, lights, as well as table glasses. The glass industry prospered accordingly, and continued to increase in size and importance as industrial developments in the 19th century encouraged innovation. Commercial processes such as pressed glass meant that by the late Victorian period everyone could afford glass, even if it was only the ubiquitous pressed glass shortbread plate.

Four hundred years on, and the anniversary is being celebrated across Scotland. The first book ever to cover the subject of Scotland's glass has just been published. I wrote the historical part of this book and had enormous fun raking through museum stores in search of early Scottish glasses. I may not have discovered a Hay glass, but I did unearth a rare set of early 18th century glasses: six beautiful glasses from Castle Semple. Read many books about glass and you will be told that it was so expensive that wine glasses were bought singly. Not true, as the Semple set shows. I also discovered one of the earliest bottles made in Scotland to survive. These treasures, and many more, will be on display in Kelvingrove Museum this summer. They also grace the pages of the new book.

The display at Kelvingrove is just one being put on by Scottish museums this year to celebrate the anniversary. The year opens in Edinburgh, where the Museum of Edinburgh is opening its glass room for the first time in twenty years. There you will find some of the high points of glassmaking in Edinburgh, ranging from a Jacobite glass made by Edinburgh's ladies for Bonnie Prince Charlie, to a royal wedding set and some fabulous contemporary glass. A special display of glass from Lauriston Castle will also be on show in the museum from February and a series of glass related lectures is scheduled for the summer.

  Then it's off to Aberdeen, where Aberdeen Art Gallery opens a special display on 2 March 2010. Running until 31 October 2010, it showcases decorative glass from the city's collection. See delicate wine glasses used during the time of the Jacobite rebellion, the jewel like creations from Perth's Vasart and Monart factories as well as innovative art pieces by contemporary makers working in Scotland such as Deborah Fladgate and Keiko Mukaide. Perth Museum will also be contributing to the celebration with a display of the best of their glassmakers and Glasgow is hoping to open their glass stores to the public in the autumn.

Back to Edinburgh where a conference is being held in the College of Art from the 1-4 October. As well as eminent speakers, there will be public demonstrations and an exhibition of glass makers associated with the college. Scottish glassmakers will be selling their wares, so it might be the perfect opportunity to buy that special Christmas present.

2010 is a year of celebration. Look out for glass makers in your area holding special demonstrations and classes. Details and updates are available from www.scotlandsglass400.co.uk. This is a year not only to celebrate the past but to encourage the flourishing studio movement that is Scotland's glass today. Enjoy!

Shiona Airlie
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Shiona Airlie & Brian Blench are authors of Scotland's Glass: 400 years of Glassmaking . Fully illustrated throughout with sumptuous colour photographs. Published in December 2009. £12.99. Further details and an order form : www.cortex-design.co.uk