Le verre gravé dans les Pays-Bas méridionaux et la principauté de Liège, 1575-1800 : contribution à l'histoire du verre en Belgique
(2008)
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- Supervisors
- Verougstraete, Hélène
- Abstract
- The dissertation aims at demonstrating the existence of a glass engraving craft in Belgium during the Modern Times, and highlighting its usefulness for the datation of types of glassware and their attribution to production centres in the Southern Low Countries and the Principality of Liège. It is founded on a catalogue of 148 pieces kept in museums and private collections in Belgium and abroad. On the basis of the study of pieces belonging to very ancient collections, the authenticity of which cannot be denied, the stylistic and epigraphic features specific to the glass engraving of the area under study have been determined. Stepping from that, a number of fakes kept in more recent collections have been identified. Since all theses adulterated pieces were adduced by the same seller, who used to be a famous author in the field of national history of glass, a complete calling into question of his work was conducted (Annex, vol. 4). A diachronic and synchronic overview of the two ways of engraving glass used in Modern Times in various European regions has allowed to situate the Belgian diamond and wheel engraving techniques in the European context, as well as to determine time periods during which they have been used in the framework of the national history of glass. A first wave of diamond engraving takes place between 1575 and 1610 and is linked to the Antwerp production of glass à la façon de Venise. It consists mainly of dedications, sometimes associated with ornamental linear friezes. Whereas its use seems to vanish in the Southern part of the Low Countries, diamond engraving spreads outstandingly over the Northern Netherlands in the first half of the 17th century. A second wave of diamond engraving develops from the 1650s on and expands until the beginning of the 18th century. It was probably driven by the wheel engraving technique and imitated its more pictorial style. Indeed, in the middle of the 17th century, some craftsmen, most probably trained in Nuremberg, settled in those regions to carry out works of art with distinctive traits. These were wheel-engraved on prestigious goblets, à la façon de Venise, then à la façon d'Angleterre, produced in the ovens of Liège and Brussels, managed by the Bonhomme family of Liège. Nevertheless, this high-standard craft would be superseded as soon as the first half of the 18th century, by Bohemian and Silesian engraved glass. The preferred iconographic themes of this period refer to the Spanish monarchy, to coats of arms of Belgian families linked to it or of families from the Principality of Liège, or to topics relating to the history of Flemish cities. There were also scenes of hunting, bacchanalia or allegoric scenes, inspired by Italian or Antwerp prints of the 16th and early 17th century. A meticulous observation of stylistic features of wheel engravings has allowed to distinguish the styles of 14 different masters practising in the Southern Low Countries and the Principality of Liège during the second half of the 17th century and the first years of the 18th century. The second part of the dissertation deals more specifically with the Bonhomme family through the study of three important manuscripts written by these liégeois entrepreneurs. Besides methods of production, descriptions of ovens, organisation and management of glassworks and account books, these documents provided interesting insights in the socio-economic framework and daily life of the third quarter of the 17th century.
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Citations
Lefrancq, J. (2008). Le verre gravé dans les Pays-Bas méridionaux et la principauté de Liège, 1575-1800 : contribution à l’histoire du verre en Belgique. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/198161