4 Glass Bead Garlands
Material: Glass beads
Size: each 45 cm
Age: ca. 30s
Origin: Gablonz, Czech
Condition:
Very good condition.
History of the production of Gablonz glass bead jewelry
The production of Gablonz glass bead jewelry has a long tradition. The history began around 1550 in Gablonz / Sudetenland (today's Czech Republic) and developed in connection with the jewelry and glass industry. At that time, the first glassworks were built and from these, glass grinding shops. In the countless Gablonz family businesses, the beads were blown up from glass tubes in front of an oil lamp with bellows reinforcement, or later with a type of Bunsen burner. This is how the "freehand beads" were blown up by hand without any shaping aids. Later, the glass tubes were blown up into "shaped beads", again in front of the "lamp", using a bead forming machine developed in this region. Father and grandfather were usually responsible for blowing up the beads. The mother and grandmother's busy hands then strung this bead material on wire in certain formations. Antique Gablonz Christmas tree decorations are now highly valued among connoisseurs and are considered a sought after collector's item.
