Compositional distinctions between 16th century 'facon-de-Venise' and Venetian glass vessels excavated in Antwerp, Belgium

At the beginning of the 16th century, Antwerp was one of the most important ports in Europe. Among the archaeological finds that are dated to this per iod of great wealth, an important number of fragments from luxurious glass vessels have been found. In view of the high price of finished Venetian gla ssware, it is unlikely that all the Antwerp glass finds are Venetian produc ts. The aim of this investigation was to determine whether there was a sign ificant local production of 'facon-de-Venise' glass vessels in Antwerp in t he 16th century and to elucidate how this local production can be distingui shed from 'real' (i.e.,imported) Venetian ware. The analysis results for 12 2 'facon-de-Venise' glass objects excavated in Antwerp were considered. Clu stering of the Antwerp data revealed five compositional groups. Two groups of glass objects were found that feature a typical Venetian composition, on e with a 'Cristallo'-like composition and the other closely resembling 'Vit rum Blanchum' glass. The other three compositional groups contain glasses t hat probably were fabricated locally. The composition of a waste glass marb le coincides with one of these groups. The differences between these three groups may indicate that different types of alkali were in use or possibly mixing of alkali types by the glass workers. The same non-Venetian composit ion was found in London, Amsterdam and various locations in France, which m ay be explained by the export of locally manufactured 'facon-de-Venise' ves sels from Antwerp to these nearby cities or by the use of similar fluxes/fl ux mixtures to those in Antwerp.