Have you ever wondered where glassmaking originated? Our latest article looks in depth at the history of glassmaking.

History of Glass

Glass as a unity has been around for centuries; Historians claim the first known glass was formed within the mouth of a volcano as a result of intense heat caused by an eruption, melting the surrounding sand. It is thought that glass was first used as tips for spears and arrows, but it was soon realised that glass could be used for more conventional use.

Glass has been dated back to as early as 4000 BC, with archaeologists suggesting it wasn’t until 1500 BC that the first recognisable glass containers were starting to be produced. With impurities plaguing the early creation of glass, the most common was the highly coloured glass being created due to the material being used As a result, a drive towards colourless glass was needed, only arriving in the first century of AD.

The ever-developing world of glassmaking continued to expand, and the secrets of glassmaking were increasingly becoming an assorted skill. With glass making its way into British hands courtesy of the Romans, historians suggest that until the collapse of the Roman Empire, the trade secrets of glassmaking were closely guarded. These developments led to glassmaking spreading throughout the world, causing the quality of glass products to improve.

With Britain’s glass industry suffering due to heavy taxation and rules enforced, it wasn’t until the repeal of the Excise Act in 1845 that the British market started to thrive. With previous laws capping the amount of glass that could be melted in glasshouses, it was only a matter of time until the industry boomed.

With the increasing advancements in science and technology, the next major development saw the use of glass in domestic and horticultural architecture, with glass manufacturing techniques improving the so-called revolution that had started.

With the importance of glass to not only the container, beverage, and oils industries, it was not long till the traditional techniques were becoming outdated. In 1887, the first semi-automatic machine was created. With the semi-automatic machine capable of producing 200 bottles per hour, the rise of the bottle industry was born. With this development, it was only a matter of time before the first fully automated machine was developed, increasing production to a staggering 2,500 bottles per hour.

Present Day

Today the glass industry has become a modern, Hi- Tech industry operating in a fiercely competitive globe market (gone are the days glass making skills were only known by the Romans) with the competition being vast there is a focus for high quality designs and customers service in order to remain competitive. Glass surrounding us everywhere, from our homes to our office place, glass packaging is evident in all walks of life.  Glass is seen as an ideal packaging method for wines, spirits, beers, food, medicines, and cosmetics industries. With the ever-changing climate and change in thinking about the environment and sustainability, glass has proved to be both environmentally friendly and sustainable. With glass easily being recycled, the longevity of glass has been assured for the foreseeable future, and it looks like there is no stopping the growth of the industry.

The Future

Who knows what the future holds for glass, but one thing for sure is there will be many changes to the distribution of glass products. As glass is a material in its own right, it can be said that glass will always exist; the problem for many is how it will change over the years. The ability to combine numerous materials will only continue to develop, causing what we know glass to be today to become a completely different quantity in the future.

Till next time - Jars and Bottles