Nailsea Glass paperweight manufacturers
_Nailsea Glass Works was established in 1788 in Somerset, seven miles from Bristol. It was first operated by John Robert Lucas, a glass maker from Bristol, and it was later taken over by a company which carried on the business until 1873, when it was closed because operations were unprofitable. One advantage of this factory was the excellent grade of coal found under Nailsea heath.
_Nailsea Glass Works was established in 1788 in Somerset, seven miles from Bristol. It was first operated by John Robert Lucas, a glass maker from Bristol, and it was later taken over by a company which carried on the business until 1873, when it was closed because operations were unprofitable. One advantage of this factory was the excellent grade of coal found under Nailsea heath.
Much of the Nailsea glass is of the Bristol type, following the Venetian in color and style. The factory imported French and Venetian workmen who were experts in latticinio and ribbon effects.
Much of the Nailsea glass is of the Bristol type, following the Venetian in color and style. The factory imported French and Venetian workmen who were experts in latticinio and ribbon effects.
_There is a tradition that these early Nailsea workers were a bad and immoral lot, and it is recorded that in 1792 two hundred of them, of all ages and both sexes, lived in a row of nineteen houses. It is not surprising to learn that these people were superstitious and that they originated the so-called "witch balls." These witch balls were hung in windows or from rafters as charms to ward off the evil eye.
_The witch ball had a hole in its bottom, and a knot was tied in a string and placed inside the opening, which was then closed by a cork. Similar balls without the opening sometimes served as covers for sugar bowls and cream pitchers. Small hollow glass balls were used by fishermen in America for bobbers, and larger ones served as floats for nets. Blue glass balls, sometimes eight inches in diameter, were also made at Nailsea, and it was claimed that these had a therapeutic value. This was the simplest form of glass blowing. These balls were often made from a mixture of colors as part of the training of apprentices.
_Superstition surrounded another object made by the Nailsea workers-namely, a cane which was from three to fifteen feet long. Canes of this kind were kept in the houses of the workers, and they were cleaned each morning on the theory that in this was all disease would be driven away. If a cane was broken, misfortune was sure to fo1low.
