The look of window glass

Ondertitel:a social and cultural history of clear window glass from the 15th to the late 19th centuries in the Scheldt‐Meuse‐Rhine‐region

As a historical building material, clear window glass has a low status. This is only too apparent in the ease with which it is replaced by new glass, because of, for instance, today’s insulation standards. Consequently, historical clear window glass is becoming increasingly rare. What is more, we are throwing away a unique and valuable material without even realising it. This is partly due to our current perception of window glass: it is meant to let in daylight and to be looked through while the glass itself is actually invisible. Yet, the ultra-transparency of our present-day window glass is only a relatively recent phenomenon. Until the emergence of float glass in the mid-20th century, window glass was always produced following different techniques and recipes, resulting in various types and qualities. Clients were aware of this range of options, and they chose the glass depending on its intended purpose, while also taking into account the price. After all, glass could be cheap or very expensive. Moreover, the sense of prestige gained was equally important in the selection of glass. All this explains why diverse types of window glass were often applied consciously within one building, and even in one single façade. In order to understand the subtleties of glazing in the past, my research reconstructs the evolution of the perception of window glass from the 15th to the late 19th centuries in the area between the rivers Scheldt, Meuse and Rhine. As such, it covers the crucial turning points in the history of window glass in our region, starting with the more widespread use of window glass. The interaction with new trends in architecture and interior design is treated as well. Furthermore, the growing diversification in clear window glass is discussed in detail up to the moment when its production became industrialised in the early 20th century. Information was gathered from literature and iconographic sources, in addition to material-technical and chemical analysis of historical window glass, and exhaustive archival research. In the end, one of the main goals of this study is to convince its readers of the intriguing and complex history of clear window glass. Finally, the insights shared in this study, as well as the methodology I developed, are translated into a ‘roadmap’ for the heritage sector. This instrument provides the missing scientific framework for the conservation, restoration and reconstruction of historical clear glazing.

Jaar van publicatie:2022

Trefwoorden:Doctoral thesis

Toegankelijkheid:Closed