Glassblowing

Glass in Persia

Parthian glassblowing was invented in the middle of the first century BC in the Syrian-Palestinian region. And quickly spread from there to the neighboring areas. Thanks to this invention, which probably reached Mesopotamia in the first century AD, glassware could be produced more easily and in greater numbers than the techniques known until then.

How is glassblown?

In Iran, glass blowing is the production of various bowls and objects from molten material in traditional ways, such as blowing and blow molding. Usually, there are two or more gas furnaces in glass workshops for simultaneous use of several types of glass materials with different colors. These workshops obtain their supplies and raw materials mainly from recycled waste and glass that has no other use. The main ingredient of glass production is silica and is sometimes used in Persian glass blowing. The main ingredient of glass is silica and it is sometimes used in Iranian glass blowing process. In the technical language of glass blowing, glass containers made from raw materials are called single-fired glass and those made from recycled glass and waste are called double-fired glass. In glass blowing, the tip of the glass blowing tube (dam) is pressed into the molten material and after a certain period of rotation, the sticky glass (rod) is pulled out. Glass blowers are used on the other side of the tube to blow the rod. The result is a small sphere gooyeh aval.

When the first item cools, it places the tailpipe in the molten material and repeatedly collects the required amount of material. The first item forms the basis for the second layer of glass with the same thickness. The blower tube is then placed on a Y-shaped metal rod and while rotating it, the blower tube is placed inside a half-wet wooden cylinder (spoon). After doing this, the blower glass passes through the blower tube to the desired size, making a larger sphere, and then making the tip with pliers. The assistant introduces another rod (clamp), separates the rod, and holds it. After this step, the glass inserts the tip and clamp it into the mouth of the furnace to reheat and soften the loaded material to sharpen it again. If necessary, the base, handle or any other decoration is attached to the object. Another tailgate uses an extra rod to remove some of the molten material from the furnace and, while attaching it to the base, forms them with pliers. In the mold blowing method, the molten material that was previously placed at the tip of the blower tube is placed in the mold and blown through the blower tube to form the desired shape. There are also ways to decorate glassware. Some of them are applied during production, such as combining with metal, layering, and colored glass. Some of them are done after blowing the glass, such as blurring the glass, painting on the glass, and scratching the glass.

Archaeological studies and findings claim that the history of this Iranian art dates back to the thirteenth century BC. We do not know the names of the old glassmakers, but we can name contemporary masters such as Khairullah Elahi, Ali Baba Bakhtiari, and Assadollah Yousefi. Blowing glass is a traditional art that is mainly known and practiced in Tehran. This art is practiced and performed today in Qazvin and Tabriz.