Sicilian Vase
Frederick S. Shirley
c. 1878
Medium
Glass
Dimensions
20.3 × 15.2 cm (8 × 6 in.)
Classification
vase
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
150062
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This vase exemplifies the first group of artistic glassware patented by the Mount Washington Glass Company. Frederick S. Shirley, an English-born and trained glassmaker, introduced the Sicilian line, which was inspired by excavations of the ancient city of Pompeii in the 1860s and included the chemical elements of volcanic lava in its ingredients. Shirley also developed the process of fusing separate shards of glass in the body of his Sicilian wares, resulting in the unusual appearance of these ...