Glassworker's burner

This glassworker's burner dates from 1953 and belongs to the museum's collection of early production tools. Its job was to heat glass before shaping. A bauble is not cut out of the material: a glass tube must first be heated, then blown into a hollow form.

The equipment of the old workshop differs little from the tools used in handmade bauble production. A burner remains a basic part of the glassblower's workstation, alongside measuring tools and containers for unfinished pieces. The flame also removes tiny impurities. A clean inner surface is needed at the next stage so that the silver coating adheres to the cooled glass.

The tool connects two operations: preparing the material for shaping and preparing its surface for silvering. Paint hides this earlier work on a finished ornament; the burner shows where it starts.